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JAMA study ranks internists among top OpenEvidence AI users; AMA issues framework for agentic AI; EHR tool trims falls in older adults

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THE SHORT READ

A JAMA study of 271 million queries to the OpenEvidence AI platform found internal medicine physicians had a use ratio of 1.88, above average, researchers from Mass General Brigham and Harvard Medical School reported. The American Medical Association (AMA) released a governance framework for agentic AI that takes on clinical functions, and a primary care trial tied an electronic health record tool to fewer falls in older adults.

THE DETAILS
  • AI Oct 15, 2026
    Internal medicine use ratio of OpenEvidence AI platform is 1.88 in JAMA study of 952,008 clinicians
    Researchers analyzed 271 million queries that 952,008 U.S. clinicians, including 556,200 physicians, submitted to the OpenEvidence AI-enabled clinical information platform from January 2024 to June 2026. Monthly active users rose from 355 to 703,265. Internal medicine's use ratio of 1.88 was above average, behind oncology and hematology at 2.00, and treatment and management made up 33.1% of physician queries versus 13.9% for diagnosis. Three authors were OpenEvidence employees during the study, and the company provided data and contributed to the analysis, according to the disclosures.
    Sources: JAMA, JAMA (article page), JAMA editor's note, Becker's Hospital Review
  • AI Oct 13, 2026
    AMA releases governance framework for agentic AI that assumes clinical functions
    The American Medical Association (AMA) framework says clinical authority for an AI system should be earned through evidence and maintained through demonstrated performance, and that authority and oversight can evolve as evidence, performance, risk or the technology changes. It is built on four questions: what clinical function the AI performs, what evidence shows it can perform it and what happens if it fails, what it should be permitted to do, and who is responsible for risks and outcomes. AMA CEO Dr. John Whyte said agentic AI is raising urgent questions about clinical authority, oversight and accountability, according to Fierce Healthcare.
    Sources: AMA, Fierce Healthcare
  • Technology Oct 16, 2026
    EHR-embedded exercise tool yields fall rate ratio of 0.91 among 11,945 older primary care patients in eSTEPS trial
    The matched-pair cluster randomized trial in JAMA Network Open enrolled adults 65 and older with a positive fall-risk screen at 22 primary care practices in a U.S. integrated health system. The eSTEPS decision support offered tailored exercise recommendations and optional physical therapy referral within the electronic health record. The rate of patients with one or more recorded falls was 19.3 versus 21.2 per 100 patient-years (rate ratio 0.91, 95% CI 0.88 to 0.95; P < .001), and 77.9% of clinicians in intervention practices used the tool.
    Sources: JAMA Network Open, JAMA Network Open (article page)

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