Effective summarization of unstructured patient data in electronic health records (EHRs) is crucial for accurate diagnosis and efficient patient care, yet clinicians often struggle with information overload and time constraints. This review dives into recent literature and case studies on both the significant impacts and outstanding issues of patient chart review on communications, diagnostics, and management. It also discusses recent efforts to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into clinical summarization tasks, and its transformative impact on the clinician's potential, including but not limited to reductions of administrative burden and improved patient-centered care.