THE VBP Blog
AI in Healthcare, One Year Later: How Healthcare Systems Are Using AI in 2025
The shift from pilots to real-world deployment of AI in healthcare.
February 12, 2025 –
In our 2024 series we framed AI in healthcare as potentially transformative, discussing the potential of tools to lighten documentation burdens, support diagnostics, streamline messaging. Now, in late 2025, health systems and providers are no longer simply experimenting. They are deploying AI solutions at scale.
While we discussed policy and governance updates in our last blog, in this one, we will explore how AI is functioning in day-to-day care delivery, what outcomes are emerging, and where the real value lies. To take things even further, we’ll also translate those findings into what value-based care and LTSS organizations must consider right now as AI continues to roll out in healthcare.
Documentation Burden, Revisited
One of the most visible and fastest-moving AI use cases in healthcare is the reduction of documentation burden. There are tools like the ambient scribe that listen to clinical encounters, transcribe conversations, and generate structured documentation. Research now shows measurable results. A quality-improvement study found use of an ambient scribe tool across outpatient settings was associated with a 20.4% reduction in time spent on notes per appointment and a 30% reduction in after-hours work time per workday. Another report emphasized that the vast deployment at The Permanente Medical Group saved more than 15,700 hours (equivalent to 1,794 working days) over one year for physicians. These results underline a shift from “we’ll test this someday” to “we are realizing efficiency gains,” which can reduce provider burnout in an industry that is constantly struggling with workforce challenges.
However, it is not all straightforward. Qualitative feedback highlights barriers, including providers noting issues around accuracy, note length, editing burden, non-English patient encounters and device access. The broader takeaway is that tools like ambient scribes can be beneficial, but the path to full scale still demands operational focus to reduce issues.
AI-Powered Consumer Messaging Allows Communication at Scale
Another key deployment wave in 2025 involves generative AI supporting consumers-provider messaging through portals and workflows. A large study at a New York-based health system tracked over 55,000 messages between October 2023 and August 2024 using an embedded generative AI tool to draft provider replies, and uptake rose from around 12% to 20%.
Research is mounting that AI-drafted replies can also reduce cognitive burden for providers, improve responsiveness, and streamline communications, but this also triggers new questions about consent, clarity, transparency and consumers expectations. In parallel, market-survey data highlight that 76% of consumers expect conversational, AI-powered messaging across care journeys (scheduling, reminders, follow-up) and see it as part of the modern experience. For organizations, the value proposition is clear that AI can reduce message backlog, improve satisfaction, and reallocate staff time toward high-value interactions. However, full integration including monitoring of message accuracy, bias, auditing of AI replies, and provider workflows is still advancing.
While documentation and messaging have scaled, diagnostics and clinical decision support remain the next frontier. Emerging reports suggest AI tools are increasingly integrated into chart review, triage, and specialist workflows. For example, at Stanford Medicine a tool called ChatEHR allows providers to query medical records conversationally, supporting chart review tasks. However, this carries greater risk as shown by a study of AI chatbots that found high vulnerability to amplifying false medical information. For value-based organizations, the upside is significant, including improved diagnostic accuracy, risk stratification, timely intervention, but must be paired with thorough monitoring, bias-testing and human-in-the-loop governance. We cannot pass of decision-making to computers, rather, this information should be used to help guide the care plans developed by providers.
Wearables and Hospital-at-Home: Remote Monitoring Moves Into the Clinical Mainstream
One of the biggest frontiers for AI, is and continues to be home health and home care. In 2025, AI-powered wearables and remote monitoring technologies have become core components of emerging hospital-at-home programs and remote consumer management strategies. Recent studies show that continuous, noninvasive monitoring supported by AI can identify early signs of deterioration and enable more personalized intervention. A peer-reviewed 2025 study found that continuous vital-sign monitoring using wearable sensors and predictive analytics allowed providers to detect subtle physiological changes earlier than traditional in-clinic observation models, strengthening the case for continuous home monitoring
Additional research from University of Arizona Health Sciences in June 2025 demonstrated that AI-enabled wearable sensors could identify physiologic stress and instability before symptoms appeared, highlighting the value of these tools for preventive care and early intervention. This kind of anticipatory monitoring is becoming a foundation for remote management, particularly for individuals with chronic conditions, mobility limitations or complex health needs.
This momentum is closely linked with the expansion of hospital-at-home and virtual ward models, which rely on round-the-clock data streams, timely alerts and reliable decision pathways. Wearables supported by AI help providers distinguish true deterioration signals from background noise, which can allow them to intervene sooner, prevent avoidable escalations and reduce emergency department utilization.
Industry analyses further confirm that 2025 represents a turning point. IQVIA reported that medical devices, wearables, digital diagnostics and AI are converging into integrated “connected care” platforms that support remote, proactive, and home-based care. Similarly, another study identified AI-enabled remote monitoring and wearable-assisted detection of high-risk events as top clinical AI use cases of 2025.
Not all reactions have been uniformly positive, though, and concerns remain. A 2025 study documented that while providers see promise in AI-enabled wearables, they also worry about data reliability, the potential for over-monitoring, cost burdens for consumers and risks of diminishing human interaction in care. These insights underscore that technology alone is insufficient. As we discussed in our AI Revolution Series last year, successful adoption requires clear workflows, transparent communication and trust, both from providers and from the consumers who rely on these devices at home.
Advocate’s Perspective
The advancement of AI tools and technology can have a big impact on value-based care and LTSS. High-risk individuals, older adults and people receiving home- and community-based services (HCBS) can benefit from earlier detection of instability, fewer inpatient days and more proactive management of chronic conditions. Hospital-at-home models supported by wearable data align naturally with the goals of integrated care programs, where consumer outcomes, experience and cost efficiency are closely linked. As AI-enabled remote monitoring becomes more widespread, it is poised to play an increasingly central role in long-term services and supports, offering pathways to expand home-based care without compromising safety or quality. However, AI adoption must be thoughtful and not just the deployment of a tool, but deploying a tool in service of holistic, patient-centered care.
Onward!
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About the Author
Fady Sahhar brings over 30 years of senior management experience working with major multinational companies including Sara Lee, Mobil Oil, Tenneco Packaging, Pactiv, Progressive Insurance, Transitions Optical, PPG Industries and Essilor (France).
His corporate responsibilities included new product development, strategic planning, marketing management, and global sales. He has developed a number of global communications networks, launched products in over 45 countries, and managed a number of branded patented products.
About the Co-Author
Mandy Sahhar provides experience in digital marketing, event management, and business development. Her background has allowed her to get in on the ground floor of marketing efforts including website design, content marketing, and trade show planning. Through her modern approach, she focuses on bringing businesses into the new digital age of marketing through unique approaches and focused content creation. With a passion for communications, she can bring a fresh perspective to an ever-changing industry. Mandy has an MBA with a marketing concentration from Canisius College.
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