Artificial intelligence has moved from science fiction to everyday reality in a matter of years, being used for everything from online activity to driving cars. Even, yes, to make medical diagnoses. But that doesn't mean people are ready to let AI drive all their medical decisions.
The technology is quickly evolving to help guide clinical decision-making across a growing number of medical specialties and diagnoses particularly when it comes to identifying anything out of the ordinary during a colonoscopy, skin cancer check or X-ray image.
New research is exploring what patients think about the use of AI in healthcare. Yale University's Sanjay Aneja, MD, and colleagues surveyed a nationally representative group of 926 patients on their comfort with the use of the technology, what concerns they have, and on their overall opinions about AI.
Turns out, patient comfort with AI depends on its use.
For example, 12% of respondents were 'very comfortable' and 43% were "somewhat comfortable" with AI reading chest X-rays. However, only 6% were very comfortable and 25% were somewhat comfortable about AI making a cancer diagnosis, according to the survey results published online May 4, 2022 in JAMA Network Open.
"Having an AI algorithm read your X-ray
