Historically, trust between doctors and patients has grown, especially as healthcare delivery became more sophisticated and mortality rates fell. But more recently, the COVID-19 crisis has been linked to a decline in trust in doctors and hospitals, according to some studies, and has threatened public confidence in the U.S. health care system.
Many healthcare experts see promise in artificial intelligence – and hope that AI will enable healthcare providers to reach more patients and improve health outcomes. And of course, despite some skepticism among vendors, AI tools continue to proliferate in the healthcare ecosystem.
But according to recent research on patient attitudes toward AI, providers need to think carefully about how they deploy these tools if they want to maintain patient trust.
Earlier this fall, Mark Polyak, president of analytics at IPSOS, and Dr. Lukasz Kowalczyk, a physician at Peak Gastroenterology Associates, during a panel discussion at the HIMSS AI in Healthcare Forum exploring patient perspectives and attitudes toward AI in healthcare. Above all, they are looking for healthcare interactions and experiences that are transparent and personal, experts on the panel said.
We recently caught up with Polyak and Kowalczyk again for a more detailed and data-driven conversation about what patients expect from AI in their own care.
They highlighted new data indicating frustration with the medical community’s inability to solve endemic problems such as cancer and mental health disparities. But they also highlighted some key areas where AI is becoming increasingly popular with patients. (For example, what people like most about generative AI is: 24/7 availability, timely responses, and the ability to ask unlimited questions and get personalized information.)
Here’s what Polyak and Kowalczyk had to say about research findings and real-world experience with patients and AI.
Do you like what you hear? Subscribe to the podcast at Apple podcasts, Spotify or Amazon Music.
Talking points:
- AI validation and social proofing.
- What do patients think about the use of AI in medical decisions?
- Opportunity as an implementation factor.
- Well-defined use cases and meaningful impact on populations that need AI most.
- Who are we doing AI for, what do they want from it and in what context do they want it?
More about this episode:
How responsible AI can improve patient outcomes
Keep patient satisfaction top of mind with AI, says healthcare IT investor
Developing trust in AI in healthcare step by step
Explanation: thinking about the safe use of AI
HIMSSCast: Where public health gets a boost from artificial intelligence