Agent Memory
An agent’s ability to remember is what makes it useful in complex healthcare workflows. Without memory, an agent would treat every conversation as a blank slate, repeating questions and forgetting critical details, its world being ultimately bound by by the chat history. Clinia addresses this by providing persistent, structured memory for each agent.Why Persistent Memory Matters
Stateful systems retain information across interactions. For agents, this means that memories of past user interactions, clinical context and decisions remain available to guide future responses.Benefits of Persistent Memory
Personalization
By recalling prior conversations and user preferences, agents can tailor their responses to individual clinicians and patients.
Efficiency
Remembering what has already been captured (e.g., family history) prevents redundant questions and saves time.
Accuracy
Combining long‑term memory with real‑time retrieval improves the agent’s ability to suggest appropriate billing codes or referral options.
Core Memory Structure
Clinia divides agent memory into several memory blocks:- User Memory
- Patient Memory
- Clinician Memory
User Memory Block
The user memory block stores information about the human users who interact with the agent. It captures:- 👤 User preferences and roles (e.g., physician, nurse)
- 📋 Historical interaction details
- 🎯 Personalization data
For example, if a user previously requested cardiology guidelines, the agent can prioritize cardiology resources in future interactions.
Long-term vs Short-term Memory
Clinia agents maintain both long‑term and short‑term memory:- Short-term Memory
- Long-term Memory
Short-term (Conversation) Memory
- 💬 Retains recent dialogue between user and agent
- 🧠 Stored within the agent’s context window
- ⚡ Informs immediate replies
- ⏳ Eventually “forgotten” as conversation progresses
Because context windows are finite, short‑term memory can eventually be “forgotten” as the conversation progresses.
Sharing and Collaboration
Because agents are deployed as services (see Agents as a Service), multiple agents can share core memory.Example: Collaborative Workflow
A background agent responsible for filling out referral forms can access the same clinical memory as the primary agent interacting with the clinician. This collaboration improves consistency across tasks and reduces duplication.
Using Memory Effectively
When designing agents, it is important to:1
Define Clear Memory Schemas
Decide which data belongs in user, clinical or persona memory. Structured schemas help the agent retrieve relevant information quickly.
2
Respect Privacy
Persisted memory must comply with privacy regulations. Clinia’s platform provides encryption and access controls to protect sensitive data.
3
Combine Memory with Retrieval
Memory alone is not enough; agents should supplement long‑term knowledge with up‑to‑date information from FHIR/OMOP sources using retrieval tools. The tools and data integration page describes how to ingest data and connect tools.
By carefully structuring memory and leveraging Clinia’s built‑in persistence, developers can create agents that learn over time, provide consistent experiences and adapt to the needs of healthcare professionals.