Hundreds of nurses in San Francisco voiced their objections to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare during a recent protest, according to Becker’s Hospital Review. For example, some criticized an AI feature within the Epic EHR that determines nurse staffing based on real-time charting. They argued that this method may not accurately or fairly account for their work. Additionally, some nurses raised objections to AI chatbots that interact with patients, which could create potential safety issues if AI gives patients bad advice.
Everyone’s talking about AI: “AI was a hot topic at the Urgent Care Association convention this year, and it will likely transform urgent care processes in the coming years. The intention is to make healthcare more efficient by automating routine, repetitive, and non-value-added tasks in order to enable providers and staff to better concentrate on the patient in front of them,” says Alan Ayers, President of Experity Consulting and Senior Editor of JUCM. “But naturally, whenever there’s technological advancement, there’s fear over job loss. Most of the concerns are shrouded in triggering topics like safety, quality, and privacy—which nobody can deny is important in healthcare—but when it comes down to it, physicians and nurses tend to fear what the change means to them personally.”