An Intel executive says doctors are reluctant about using AI in medicine because they don't trust it
- Healthcare has had a mixed response to using artificial intelligence as part of daily life inside hospitals.
- Jennifer Esposito, general manager of chipmaker Intel's health and life sciences group, told Business Insider that the reason many doctors are reluctant to adopt AI is because they don't trust it when it comes to making big decisions.
- But AI can help out in other ways, especially on the administrative side that takes up a lot of doctors' time. "I believe things like AI aren't about replacing physicians it's about augmenting them," Esposito said.
Artificial intelligence is slowly but surely making its way into every aspect of our lives.
But one place that's had mixed reactions to the idea of placing major decisions in the hands of machines is the doctor's office.
Over the summer, Intel conducted a survey in which it asked doctors why they weren't using AI.
The biggest reason: A lack of trust. Doctors were reluctant about relying on technology that could introduce a fatal error or harm patients.
Jennifer Esposito, the general manager of chipmaker Intel's health and life sciences group, told Business Insider that building up that trust comes down to better communication about what AI can and can't do, as well as highlighting some of ways it can be used. For example, AI could be applied to scan patients' prescriptions to make sure drugs they've been prescribed won't cause problems if used together, or to take away some of the administrative tasks doctors have to do in addition to seeing patients.
"I believe things like AI aren't about replacing physicians it's about augmenting them," Esposito said. With the help of AI built into health system's health records, for example, doctors could see only the most complicated patients in person.
"That also allows you to think, you don't have to necessarily worry that I've gotta see the patient to know for sure," Esposito said. "Now you can make decisions about which patients really do need to come into the office versus not."
The market for AI in healthcare is expected to grow to $6.6 billion by 2021, with all sorts of companies from startups to healthcare giants like UnitedHealth Group coming up with different applications for AI to enhance the way we practice medicine.
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