The ScribeMD handbook · Mobile app
ScribeMD on your phone
Record visits and dictations, upload recordings made with other apps, then check, correct and share the note, all from your phone. Short, practical guides with screenshots of the real app.
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Try a feature name, such as recording, upload, template or Answers.
Safe use and limitations
ScribeMD records a consultation or your dictation, transcribes it and drafts notes and letters for you to review. Everything it writes is a draft: it does not replace your clinical judgement, and it is not for use in emergencies.
You stay responsible for the record
- Read every note and letter before you use it, and compare it with what was said. Correct anything wrong or missing.
- Take particular care with drug names, doses, negatives ("no chest pain"), left and right, and numbers.
- Check that the note belongs to the right patient before you copy it into their record.
- Do not rely on ScribeMD to have captured something. If it matters and it is not in the note, add it yourself.
Known limitations
- Accuracy drops with background noise, people talking over each other, a distant microphone, strong accents, speech impairments and mixed languages.
- ScribeMD can mishear a word, attribute a statement to the wrong person or record something hypothetical as fact.
- It only knows what was said or what you gave it. It can leave details out and, rarely, add something that was not said.
On your phone
- Place the phone between you and the patient, screen up and close enough to hear you both. A phone in a pocket or a bag records poorly.
- Before you start talking, check that the timer is running and the app shows Listening.
- Protect the phone with a screen lock: the app keeps you signed in, so anyone who can open the phone can read your notes. Tap Logout before you hand it to someone else.
- Never type patient identifiers into Answers: it searches the web to cite live sources.
Telling patients
Tell patients at the start that ScribeMD will record and transcribe the consultation to draft their notes, and that they can say no. If a patient objects, do not record: write the notes yourself.
Your organization may switch off some features (such as Answers or Co-Pilot suggestions), ask you to approve each note before it is sent to another system, or ask you to confirm that you told the patient before each visit. These settings follow your organization's clinical safety and information governance decisions.
Found an error that could affect patient care? Report it through your organization's incident process and to us at support@scribemd.ai.
Get the app and sign in
The ScribeMD app records visits and dictations on your phone, then writes the note with your templates. It works with your ScribeMD account: what you record on the phone is also in the web app.
Install the app
Download ScribeMD from the App Store (iPhone and iPad) or Google Play (Android).
Sign in
- Open the app and tap Get Started.
- Enter the email address of your ScribeMD account and tap Continue. We email you a 6-digit code: type it under Enter 6-digit code and you are in.
- Prefer a password? Tap Sign in with password. You can also use Sign in with Google, or Sign in with Apple on iPhone.
- No account yet? Tap Get started at the bottom of the screen to create one with your name and email.
Getting around
The microphone in the middle of the bar at the bottom opens the recorder (chapters 2 and 3). The other buttons depend on what your organization uses:
| Button | What you will find |
|---|---|
| Encounters | Your visits and dictations, newest first and grouped by day, each with its status. Search by title at the top; pull down to refresh. |
| Patients | Your patient list (chapter 6). When it is not in the bar, it is in Settings. |
| Answers | Clinical questions answered from the medical literature, with sources (chapter 7). Shown when your organization uses Answers. |
| Schedule | Your appointments from your EHR, when your organization has connected its schedule. Start a visit from an appointment. |
| Settings | Your account, your subscription and the app's language (chapter 8). |
Forgot your password? You do not need it: Continue emails you a sign-in code.
Record a visit
Transcribe records the conversation with your patient. Put the phone down between you, tap to start, and slide to finish when the visit is over: ScribeMD transcribes the audio and writes the note with your template.
Set up the visit
- Tap the microphone in the middle of the bottom bar. Check that Transcribe is selected at the top: you choose the mode before you start.
- If your organization requires patient consent, the Patient Consent sheet opens first, with your organization's text. Go through it with the patient and tap I Agree. If the patient says no, tap Decline and do not record.
- Tap Add patient details to attach the patient: pick them in Select Patient, or tap Add New Patient, where only Full Name is required. A patient is optional.
- Your default template is selected. Tap it to choose another one in Select Template; you can change it even while recording.
- Under Add context, type anything the note should take into account, such as the reason for referral or results you already have. You can keep typing while you record.
- The name at the top is the microphone in use. To record with a headset, tap it and choose the headset in Select Microphone.
Record and finish
- Tap the large microphone (Tap to start recording). The timer starts and Listening shows that the app is recording.
- Pause stops the recording during an interruption; Resume carries on in the same recording.
- When the visit is over, drag Slide to finish all the way across.
- The app goes back to Encounters. The visit shows Generating while ScribeMD transcribes the audio and writes the note, then Completed. Tap it to open the note (chapter 5).
While you record
Lock the phone or switch apps. The recording carries on in the background. On iPhone it can also show on the lock screen; on Android a ScribeMD notification stays on while it records.
Phone calls. A call pauses the recording, and the app tells you: Recording paused — a call took the microphone. It resumes automatically when the call ends.
Uploads as you go. The audio is sent in short parts while you record. Synced at the bottom of the screen confirms that the visit's details (patient, template, context) are saved.
No connection? Keep recording. The audio waits on the phone and uploads once you are back online, while ScribeMD is open. The note is written when everything has arrived.
Need to step away? The round button at the top of the recorder, next to the microphone name, closes it. Leave keeps the recording as a Draft: tap the draft in Encounters to carry on.
Templates and note language are set in the web app (see the web & desktop manual). The app uses your templates, with your default one selected.
Dictate a note
Dictate is for speaking the note yourself, without the patient: after a visit, between patients, or on the move. Your words appear on the screen as you speak, and ScribeMD turns them into a note with your template.
- Open the recorder and tap Dictate at the top, before you start. The screen title changes to Dictate.
- Choose the template and, if you like, the patient and the context, as for a visit.
- Tap the microphone and speak. The transcript appears live as you talk.
- Pause, Resume and Slide to finish work as for a visit, and the note then appears in Encounters.
Dictation needs a connection. It is transcribed while you speak, so the app asks you to connect before it starts. To record without a connection, use Transcribe.
Upload an audio file
Recorded the visit with another app or device? Share the audio file to ScribeMD. It becomes a visit, and the note is written as for a recording made in the app.
- In the app that has the recording (Files, Voice Memos, WhatsApp, your email…), select the audio file and tap Share.
- Choose ScribeMD. On Android, share one file at a time. On iPhone, if ScribeMD is not in the row of apps, tap More at the end of the row.
- The Upload Audio screen opens. Tap Play Preview to check that it is the right recording.
- Choose the patient, the template and the context as for a visit, then tap Finish. The file uploads and the note is written.
- Wrong file? Discard Audio removes it from ScribeMD without uploading anything.
Uploading needs a connection. If you are offline, the app asks you to connect first.
Consent. Uploads do not show the Patient Consent sheet. Make sure the patient agreed to be recorded.
Review, edit and share a note
Tap a visit in Encounters to read the note, check it against the recording and the transcript, correct it and send it on.
Check the note
- Once the note is ready, the player at the top plays the Original recording. The arrows skip back or forward 15 seconds; 1x switches the speed to 1.5x and 2x.
- Notes shows the note in your template's sections. Transcription shows what was said, speaker by speaker.
- To paste the note into your EHR, copy a section with the button next to its title, or the whole note with the round copy button at the bottom of the note.
- Rate the note with the thumbs up or down. Thumbs down asks you what could be improved.
Use another template
- Tap Change next to the template name.
- Pick a template in Regenerate with template and confirm. The note is rewritten from the same recording and transcript and replaces the current one.
Edit, share and more
Tap ⋯ next to the visit's title. Some options only appear once the note is finished:
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Resume recording | Records more on the same visit. When you finish, the note is regenerated from the whole recording and replaces the current note, edits included. |
| Edit Notes | Change the text of each section. Add inserts a line, the bin deletes one. Tap Save before you go back, or your changes are lost. |
| Regenerate Notes | Writes the note again from the same transcript. It replaces the current note straight away, without asking first. |
| Regenerate with another template | The same as Change. Pick a template and the note is rewritten. |
| Share | Sends the note by email. Add each address, then tap Share. Each recipient gets a link and a one-time code to open the note; the link expires after 7 days. |
| Print Notes | Opens your phone's print screen. |
| Send to EHR | Sends the note to your EHR. Shown when your organization's EHR connection supports it and the visit is linked to an EHR encounter. |
| Delete Consultation | Deletes the visit at once. The app does not ask for confirmation. |
Edit last. Regenerating the note, changing its template and resuming the recording all replace the note, including your edits.
Patients
Keep a list of the patients you see, and attach each visit to the right one.
- Open Patients in the bottom bar or in Settings. Search by name at the top.
- Tap Add Patient, enter the Full Name (required), the gender and the Date of Birth, then tap Save Patient.
- Tap a patient to see their details. The pencil edits them; the bin deletes the patient once you confirm.
- To attach a patient to a visit, use Add patient details in the recorder (chapter 2).
Ask a clinical question
Answers replies to clinical questions from the medical literature, with numbered references to the sources it used.
- Open Answers and tap +. Your earlier questions are listed on the same screen.
- Type your question in the box at the bottom, or tap the microphone to dictate it. Dictation fills in the box: check it, then send.
- Sources narrows the search to the sources your organization approved. The depth button chooses Auto, Instant (a few seconds) or Deep Search (60 to 120 seconds).
- The paperclip adds up to four attachments: Take a photo, Choose a photo or Choose a file (PDF, image, text or CSV).
- Send. The answer arrives with numbered references; tap one to open its source.
No patient identifiers. The app reminds you: Answers searches the web to cite live sources — never include patient identifiers.
No need to watch the screen. If you allowed notifications, ScribeMD tells you when the answer is ready.
No Answers button? Answers is switched on per organization. Ask your admin.
Settings
Settings holds your account, your subscription and the app's language. Templates, note language and your other preferences are set in the web app: More Settings opens it in your browser.
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Edit Account | Change your name, email, phone number or password. To delete your account, the button at the bottom emails our team. |
| Patients | Your patient list (chapter 6). |
| Manage Subscription | Your plan. Upgrading is paid through the App Store or Google Play, and Manage Plan opens your store subscriptions to change or cancel it. If your organization pays for ScribeMD, ask your admin. |
| Language | The app's language. It is the same setting as App Language in the web app and does not change the language of your notes. |
| Privacy Policy | Opens our privacy policy in your browser. |
| Terms of Service | Opens our terms of service in your browser. |
| More Settings | Opens your settings in the web app, in your browser. Sign in there if asked. |
| Logout | Signs you out of the app, once you confirm. |
Updates. The app updates itself: when an update is ready it shows Update Available and restarts on its own. The version is at the bottom of Settings, with Check for updates.
Troubleshooting
What the app's messages mean, and what to do about them.
The sign-in code has not arrived
Check your spam folder. For a new code, go back and tap Continue again. You can also sign in with your password or with Google.
The app cannot use the microphone
If you did not allow the microphone, the recorder shows Microphone Access Required. Tap the link below it, then Open Settings, and turn on the microphone for ScribeMD.
No audio detected
In Transcribe, No audio detected. Check your microphone. replaces Listening when the app has heard nothing for a few seconds. Check that nothing covers the microphone and that the input named at the top of the recorder is the one you are using.
A call interrupted the recording
The recording pauses during the call and starts again by itself when it ends (Recording resumed). If the microphone stops sending audio, the app pauses the recording to protect it: tap Resume.
You are offline
Transcribe keeps recording: the audio waits on the phone and uploads once you are back online, while ScribeMD is open. Dictate, uploading a file and regenerating a note need a connection.
The audio is still uploading
After you finish, a banner at the top of Encounters counts the parts left to upload. You can start your next visit: The note will be generated automatically when the upload finishes. Keep ScribeMD open, or open it again later, until the banner disappears.
The note was not generated
If a visit shows Failed, open it and tap Retry.