For Medical Scribes ·
What you'll accomplish
By the end of this guide, you'll be able to use ChatGPT to generate clear, patient-friendly education handouts and discharge instructions in under 2 minutes — a task that currently takes 10-20 minutes of web searching and rewriting. Your physician reviews and approves; you become the person who makes their patient education workflow effortless.
What you'll need
Go to chat.openai.com and sign in. Start a new conversation. Set context:
"I'm a medical scribe helping draft patient education materials that physicians review before sharing. I need clear, patient-friendly explanations written at a 6th-8th grade reading level — no medical jargon. The physician always reviews and approves before I share anything."
What you should see: ChatGPT acknowledges your role and the physician review requirement.
Type a prompt using this structure:
Write patient-friendly education for a patient with [diagnosis]. Include: (1) What it is in plain language, (2) Why the doctor is treating it this way, (3) What the patient should do at home, (4) Warning signs to watch for and when to call the doctor. Write at a 6th grade reading level. Keep it under 300 words.
What you should see: A clean, readable handout draft with four clear sections — no medical jargon, no dense paragraphs.
If your physician has specific phrases they always use, or requires certain information be included, follow up with: "Add a section about [physician's specific requirement, e.g., 'when to take blood pressure readings at home']. Keep the same reading level."
For ED or post-procedure encounters, use:
Write discharge instructions for a patient who had [procedure/treatment] for [diagnosis]. Include: what to expect in recovery, activity restrictions, medications to take and why, follow-up appointments, and when to return to the ED or call 911. Written at a 6th grade reading level.
What you should see: A structured discharge document organized in the order patients most need to understand.
Print or copy the draft into your EHR's patient education field. Never share with a patient without explicit physician review and approval. Some physicians will want to see it and approve; others will trust you to use pre-approved templates.
New diagnosis education:
Write patient-friendly education for a patient newly diagnosed with [diagnosis]: what it is, how it's treated, what to do at home, when to call the doctor. 6th grade reading level, under 350 words.
Discharge instructions:
Write discharge instructions after [procedure/ED visit for condition]: what to expect, activity restrictions, medications, follow-up, when to return to ED or call 911. 6th grade level.
Medication explanation:
Write a patient-friendly explanation of [medication name]: what it is, why the doctor prescribed it, how to take it, and common side effects to watch for. Plain language, no jargon.
Lifestyle modification guidance:
Write patient-friendly lifestyle modification guidance for [diagnosis]: diet changes, exercise recommendations, weight management, and specific habits to change. 6th grade reading level.