AI scribe for psychologists in Alberta
SpecScribe is an AI scribe for registered psychologists in Alberta. Once the patient's consent is recorded, it transcribes the session, or works from your typed session notes, and drafts the note in DAP, SOAP, BIRP, narrative or report format.
You review, edit and sign every note. Nothing becomes part of the record until you do.
Psychology practices get their own templates and drafting instructions written for Alberta psychology: no prescribing, DSM-5-TR codes by number, and no test items. The templates are drafts pending review by practising specialists.
How it works
From the session to a signed note
- 1
Set up as a psychology practice
When your practice signs up, the administrator confirms the practice is a custodian under Alberta's Health Information Act and attests to obtaining clients' informed consent. Psychology drafting stays off until that attestation is on file.
- 2
Consent, then record
Before transcription starts, SpecScribe checks that the patient's consent to recording and AI-assisted documentation is on file. Recording runs in the browser, so there's nothing to install.
- 3
Or write your session notes
If you'd rather not record, or your client declines, choose “Write session notes” and type what happened in your own words. SpecScribe drafts the note from your text.
- 4
Draft, then edit and sign
Common identifiers such as the patient's name, health number, phone and address are removed from the text before the AI drafts the note in your chosen template. AI-written text is highlighted. Correct it, add what only you observed, and sign. The session audio is deleted when you sign.
Templates
Psychology note templates
Each template has its own ordered sections, and the AI drafts each section from what was said in the session. Choose psychology as your practice's specialty at sign-up to use them.
| Template | Use it for | Sections |
|---|---|---|
| Intake | Initial assessment | Presenting concern and referral question; background history; current functioning; mental status exam; risk assessment; clinical impressions and recommendations |
| Progress note (DAP) | Ongoing therapy sessions | Data; assessment; plan |
| Treatment plan | Goals and how you'll measure them | Working diagnosis; treatment goals; treatment modalities; outcome measurement; termination criteria |
| Test interpretation note | Tests given outside a full assessment | Tests administered; results; interpretation; caveats and limitations |
| Risk assessment note | Structured suicide and harm risk assessment | Presenting risk concern; risk factors; protective factors; risk level and rationale; safety plan |
| Termination summary | The end of a treatment episode | Course of treatment; presenting concerns addressed; outcome measures; reason for termination; aftercare plan |
| Consultation letter | Writing back to a referring clinician | Reason for the letter; summary of findings; recommendations; closing and signature |
| Collateral contact note | Contact with a parent, teacher, physician or other third party | Contact details; purpose; information exchanged; outcome and follow-up |
All templates are drafts pending review by practising specialists. Any note can also be drafted in SOAP, BIRP, narrative or report format, and SpecScribe remembers your preferred format and section order.
Drafting rules
Written for how psychologists document in Alberta
No prescribing
Psychologists in Alberta don't prescribe, so the drafting instructions tell the AI to leave out prescriptions, doses and medication recommendations. If a dose or prescribing word appears in a draft, SpecScribe flags it for you to fix before you sign.
DSM-5-TR codes by number
The drafting instructions ask for DSM-5-TR and ICD-10-CA codes by number, with paraphrased descriptions rather than the APA's copyrighted criteria text. Wording that looks like a copied criteria list is flagged.
No test items
Test interpretation notes name the tests and report scores and interpretation. The drafting instructions tell the AI not to reproduce test items, scoring keys or copyrighted instrument content, so check each interpretation before you sign.
Reminders while you draft
Psychology drafts remind you to confirm the client was told AI assists with documentation. Collateral contact notes and consultation letters also remind you to check that a release-of-information consent is on file.
Risk and rating scales
Risk assessment notes, PHQ-9, GAD-7 and AUDIT-C
The risk assessment note has sections for the presenting concern, risk factors, protective factors, your risk level and its rationale, and the safety plan you agreed with your client. The risk level is yours to set. SpecScribe doesn't diagnose, triage or recommend treatment.
Enter the item responses and SpecScribe adds them up using each scale's published scoring, shows the standard severity band, and inserts the score and today's date into the note. If PHQ-9 item 9 is positive, the inserted line reminds you to complete a suicide risk assessment.
Example
What a psychology progress note draft looks like
- Data
- Mr. T. (fictional, 41) completed a thought record on four of seven days and reports fewer late-night worry episodes. Low mood persists on weekends. PHQ-9 today: 11/27 — moderate depressive symptoms; item 9 negative.
- Assessment
- Engaging well with cognitive restructuring. Behavioural activation not yet started. Working diagnosis unchanged; clinician to confirm. Risk status: clinician to confirm.
- Plan
- Begin behavioural activation with two scheduled weekend activities; continue the thought record. Next session in one week.
Privacy
Designed to support your PIPEDA and HIA obligations
As the custodian, your clinic keeps its obligations under PIPEDA and provincial laws like Alberta's HIA. SpecScribe supports them: patient health information is stored in Canada, the app refuses to send it to storage or transcription services outside Canada, identifiers are removed before AI drafting on Anthropic's Claude API in the US, and access to patient records is logged.
Who it's for
Built for psychology practices in Alberta
SpecScribe's psychology templates are for registered psychologists in private and group practices in Alberta. A practice signs up once and invites its clinicians, and each psychologist reviews and signs their own notes.
We're based in Edmonton. Therapists, counsellors and social workers use the behavioural health templates instead; see the page for therapists.
FAQ
Questions psychologists ask
No. Psychologists in Alberta don't prescribe, so the drafting instructions tell the AI to leave out prescriptions, doses and medication recommendations. If a dose or prescribing word still appears in a draft, SpecScribe flags it for you to fix before you sign.
The drafting instructions ask for DSM-5-TR and ICD-10-CA codes by number, with paraphrased descriptions instead of the APA's copyrighted criteria text, and wording that looks like a copied criteria list is flagged. Any diagnosis in a note is yours to confirm: SpecScribe drafts documentation and doesn't diagnose.
Yes. SpecScribe won't transcribe a visit until the patient's consent to recording and AI-assisted documentation is recorded. Your clinic, as the custodian, decides how consent is obtained; SpecScribe stores the record and checks for it before recording. If a client declines, you can write session notes instead.
Yes. The test interpretation note has sections for the tests administered, results, interpretation, and caveats and limitations. The drafting instructions tell the AI not to reproduce test items, scoring keys or copyrighted instrument content, so check each interpretation before you sign.
Yes. Choose “Write session notes” when you start a session and type what happened; SpecScribe drafts the note from your text. It's useful when a client declines recording or when you're documenting an earlier session. You review and sign the draft the same way.
No. SpecScribe is not affiliated with or endorsed by the College of Alberta Psychologists. The templates and drafting instructions were written for Alberta psychology practice, but they're drafts pending review by practising specialists, and your own professional standards still apply.
Solo Scribe is $99 per provider per month with 50 encounters included, then $2 per extra encounter. Clinical Command Center is $149 per provider per month with unlimited encounters. Every plan starts with a 30-day free trial, and no credit card is needed to start.
Keep reading
Related pages
The templates are drafts pending review by practising specialists. SpecScribe drafts documentation for clinician review and signature; it is not a diagnostic or treatment tool. The sample note on this page uses a fictional client. General information, not legal advice.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-22
DSM-5-TR is a trademark of the American Psychiatric Association. SpecScribe is not affiliated with or endorsed by the American Psychiatric Association or the College of Alberta Psychologists.
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