AI In health care: It's not binary

Neil Baum, MD

AI will be bigger than all other tech revolutions, and robots are likely to replace 50 percent of all jobs in the next decade," Kai-Fu Lee, venture capitalist and author of AI Super Powers

Most futurists predict that AI will revolutionize most businesses and professions, including healthcare. However, the healthcare community is resistant to embracing AI in their practices. Now, there are two camps: those who embrace AI and those who are fearful of Luddites who can't see its advantages and believe the risks are greater than the rewards. This article discusses both sides of the coin and suggest a hybrid adaption of AI that will benefit patients and providers.

The early adopters

AI has the potential to serve as the ultimate assistant to physicians. They believe AI is helpful to enhance their capabilities without replacing them. Doctors have access to advanced AI tools that provide real-time data analysis, predictive diagnostics, and customized treatment plans for each patient. This helps decrease administrative burdens and allows doctors to devote more time and energy to enhancing patient relationships.

Patients, in turn, benefit from AI-based technologies that are safe and easily accessible, offering them the latest healthcare advances and proactive care solutions. Remember that the human touch remains at the core of healthcare, with AI acting as a powerful ally in pursuing medical excellence. At this time, AI cannot hold a patient's hand and provide empathy and compassion. My take-home message is that we have nothing to fear, as AI will not replace the physician.

Of course, regulatory frameworks are needed to ensure patient safety and ethical standards. Practices need regulations that prioritize patient welfare and data privacy. Advanced encryption and security measures safeguard patient information. At the same time, integrating AI reduces healthcare costs, making high-quality care more affordable and accessible to all.

The other side of the AI coin

Some patients and doctors feel that the doctor-patient relationship has become a relic of the past. Doctors fear AI algorithms, driven by relentless optimization and cost-cutting, are poised to replace the physician. These fearful doctors note that patients are reduced to data points; their unique stories and emotional needs are ignored in favor of standardized, one-size-fits-all treatment plans. These doctors complain that the warmth of human interaction replaces efficiency, focusing on data collection rather than the patient.

These physicians argue that medical schools risk becoming obsolete, as AI algorithms diagnose, treat, and even perform surgeries more accurately and quickly than humans. They cry out that the art of medicine is lost, replaced by science devoid of empathy or compassion.

Privacy is a distant memory, as personal health information is accumulated and analyzed with little regard for individual consent or security. The tech giants that develop and control these AI technologies hold immense power, dictating the direction of healthcare and prioritizing their interests over patient welfare. These physicians fear the dehumanized healthcare system in which patients are mere commodities and are thought of as data points rather than patients.

The once-promising potential of AI in healthcare may be that technology dehumanizes medicine and erodes trust in the system.

The middle: ground-splitting the baby

The best of both worlds is that AI complements traditional medicine and does not replace it. With or without AI, the doctor-patient relationship is central to providing good healthcare. AI has the potential to enhance and expand physicians' efficiency and productivity. Algorithms are now accepted as part of healthcare delivery. AI can sift through large amounts of data, identify patterns, and provide insights that assist clinical decision-making.

Healthcare is learning how to harness the power of AI effectively. Future doctors will be trained not only in traditional medical knowledge but also in the use of AI tools, with the potential to improve patient outcomes. Patients benefit from a healthcare system that is more efficient, accurate, and customized without sacrificing to keep up with innovations and ensure that patient safety, privacy, and ethical issues are considered. This oversight creates an atmosphere where AI exists yet maintains patients' trust and protects patients' rights.

In this hybrid future, healthcare costs are optimized, and accessibility is improved without compromising quality or privacy. AI helps to reduce unnecessary expenses, making advanced medical care more affordable. Privacy is safeguarded through security measures and transparent practices, ensuring patient data is used ethically and responsibly.

Path to a future marriage of AI and traditional medicine

To have the best achievable future where AI and physicians work together, we need to start taking steps to make this marriage of AI and traditional healthcare possible. Three pillars help us save the core value of the doctor-patient connection:

1. Highlighting the importance of human touch. Medical education must emphasize the irreplaceable value of empathy, compassion, and the therapeutic relationship with human touch. Simultaneously, public awareness campaigns can help patients understand the complementary roles of AI and traditional medicine.
2. Provide oversight and regulations. We create an atmosphere where AI's evolving capabilities and potential risks are given serious consideration. This involves providing clear, accessible information about AI technologies and creating an understanding of their impact on physicians, which will ultimately have a positive impact on patient outcomes.
3. We will need educational programs to boost AI literacy among physicians and the public. These programs should demystify AI and explain its benefits, limitations, and applications in healthcare. We must encourage people to use AI tools for health monitoring and virtual connections between patients and physicians.

Yet, on a larger scale, we often act as if we have no influence over the future.

Structured methodologies like the one we've explored help us learn how to "dream well" in a way that yields achievable, valuable outcomes. These practices ensure that our visions for the future are imaginative but also practical and attainable.

The bottom line: Physicians should not fall for the fear-mongering around AI. Despite the increased use of automation and digitalization, doctors will always be needed to care for patients. Robots and AI may lead to expanded employment and increased wages. However, the fear of artificial intelligence replacing doctors and robots surpassing surgeons' skills to take jobs in pharma will probably not occur. We must begin and end by putting patients first. We must never lose sight of the importance of empathy, compassion, and the medicinal value of human touch.

Neil Baum is a physician in New Orleans and the author of The Business of Building and Managing a Healthcare Practice, Springer 2023