SummarizeAI: See What Matters, Skip What Doesn’t
I will never forget my first day covering for one of our senior veterinarians.
The first patient on my schedule was an 18-year-old cat named Millie. She was a two-time cancer survivor, diabetic, proudly missing one eye, and deeply beloved by her owner. Her medical record was the digital equivalent of War and Peace. And despite the fact that I had been out of veterinary school for over a decade, her owner still referred to me as “the new vet.”
By the time I finished scrolling through years of SOAP notes, lab results, referral letters, and scanned documents, I was already behind schedule. Millie was glaring at me from her carrier. Her owner was visibly skeptical. And my heart was racing.
This is exactly the kind of moment SummarizeAI was built for.
Because sometimes, you do not need every line of every note. You just need to know what matters right now.
The Challenge: Information overload meets real-life medicine
Every veterinarian has had a “Millie” moment.
You open a patient record and it feels endless. Years of visits, multiple doctors, referral reports, phone calls, and updates layered on top of one another. Somewhere in all of that information are the details you need to make good decisions. Finding them just takes time you do not have.
In a profession where every minute counts, the burden of navigating overwhelming medical records isn’t just frustrating – it can delay care and make even seasoned veterinarians feel like they’re chasing their tails.
That’s where SummarizeAI steps in.
Meet SummarizeAI: Your patient’s CliffsNotes
SummarizeAI is a new way of understanding patient history. In seconds, it delivers a concise, clinically relevant summary of a patient’s entire record by distilling pages of SOAP notes, lab results, and referral notes into an intuitive, structured format that’s ready before you even step into the exam room.
Think of it as your exam-room-ready briefing. Your very-own “CliffsNotes” – or in this case, “Millie’s Notes.”
At the top, you get your TL;DR (Too Long; Didn’t Read) summary. This is the high-level overview you would expect during case rounds. What matters most, what is ongoing, and what you need to know walking in.
Below that, you’ll see chronological visit summaries, each one a clean, AI-generated digest of previous SOAP notes. Dedicated sections highlight medications and supplements, lab work, and behavioral history. Everything is automatically compiled and always traceable back to the original source if you want to dig deeper.
Why it works
SummarizeAI provides better understanding of large amounts of data. It highlights:
- Key Diagnoses: What’s ongoing, what’s resolved, and what’s worth watching.
- Medication and Diet History: A complete therapeutic picture that helps prevent drug interactions or duplication.
- Bloodwork and Lab Trends: See key patterns at a glance-stable renal values, rising liver enzymes, or that subtly Addisonian Na/K ratio,. so you can make informed decisions without digging through years of reports manually.
- Behavioral Notes: You know before opening the carrier that “mouthy” really means “land-shark” and it might be time to grab an extra hand or muzzle. You also see client preferences, sensitivities, and expectations, which helps you build trust before the first word is spoken.
From overwhelmed to on-track
Now imagine walking into Millie’s exam again.
This time, you already know her history of mammary carcinoma and glaucoma. You know about her enucleation, her diabetes management, and her recent lab trends. You know her owner’s name, her preferences, and that she is terribly afraid of chickens (so make sure not to put her in the exotics room!)
So instead of starting with, “I’m just going to review her chart real quick,”(cue the client’s eye rolls) you can start with, “I saw Millie’s last bloodwork looked stable – that’s great news. Let’s talk about what’s changed since her last visit.” That shift matters.
That’s not just efficiency. That’s empathy. And in that moment, you’ve earned something more valuable than time: trust.
Beyond preparation: The visit itself
Even the best preparation only gets you so far. What happens during the visit matters just as much.
That is where Shepherd’s AI suite continues to support you. SummarizeAI sets the stage before you walk in. TranscribeAI captures medically relevant details as the exam unfolds, working quietly in the background to create complete, doctor-controlled SOAP notes in real-time during the appointment – so you can focus on your patient, not your keyboard. DiagnoseAI supports clinical decision-making with patient-specific suggestions and differential diagnoses worth considering based on the patient’s history, clinical findings, and exam details. Sometimes it confirms what I am already thinking. Sometimes it surfaces rare or less obvious differentials that are important to rule out.
All in one system. All in real time.
This is what technology should do. It should feel like second nature, so the medicine can take center stage.
And throughout it all, SummarizeAI stays current. As soon as new information is added to the chart, SummarizeAI recognizes the change, ensuring it always reflects the most accurate and up-to-date version of the patient’s story.
The future of veterinary medicine, simplified
Together, SummarizeAI, TranscribeAI, and DiagnoseAI create clarity across the entire visit.
Before the visit, you walk in prepared.
During the visit, you stay present.
After the visit, you leave confident.
Every chart becomes a living snapshot of care that is intelligent, interactive, and personalized.
SummarizeAI was built for every moment you have ever thought, “I just need the quick version.” Because no one has time to read a 200-page chart before every appointment. But every pet deserves a doctor who walks in ready.
And when you can do that consistently and compassionately, it does more than improve efficiency. It strengthens connection.
Just like Millie. The one-eyed, cancer-surviving cat who finally purred in the exam room for the first time. For the “new vet.”
