A new study has found that many adults in the U.S. do not fully trust their healthcare system when it comes to using artificial intelligence (AI). The research, published in JAMA Network Open, shows that 65.8% of surveyed adults have low confidence that AI will be used responsibly by healthcare providers.
Additionally, 57.7% of them worry that AI tools might harm patients, and they do not fully trust the system to prevent such risks.
The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Michigan and the University of Minnesota. It was based on a survey of a nationally representative group of adults in the U.S., carried out between June and July 2023.
The participants were selected from the National Opinion Research Center’s AmeriSpeak Panel, a well-established survey platform that collects opinions from people across different backgrounds.
One important finding from the study is that people who already have higher trust in their healthcare system tend to believe that their doctors and hospitals will protect them from any risks related to AI. In contrast, those who have little trust in the system in general are also more skeptical about the use of AI in medical care.
The study also found that gender played a role in trust levels. Women were less likely than men to trust their healthcare system to use AI responsibly. However, the researchers did not find any clear connection between a person’s level of health knowledge or AI knowledge and their level of trust.
This suggests that simply teaching people more about AI may not be enough to build trust. Instead, healthcare providers may need to take extra steps to engage with patients and reassure them about how AI is being used in their care.
The authors of the study suggest that future research should look at how trust changes over time, especially as more hospitals and clinics start using AI for diagnosing diseases, recommending treatments, and managing patient records.
They also emphasize that healthcare providers should do a better job of communicating with the public about how AI is being used and what measures are in place to keep patients safe.
Review and Analysis of the Findings
This study highlights a major challenge in integrating AI into healthcare: trust. AI is increasingly being used to help doctors diagnose diseases, predict health risks, and recommend treatments.
However, if patients do not trust these systems, they may hesitate to accept AI-assisted medical decisions. The research shows that trust in AI is closely linked to overall trust in healthcare, meaning that people who already feel uncertain about their doctors or hospitals are also more likely to doubt AI.
The fact that women are more skeptical than men could be due to various factors, including past experiences with the healthcare system or concerns about fairness in AI decision-making. However, the study does not explore the reasons behind this gender gap in detail, so more research is needed.
Another key finding is that knowing more about AI does not automatically lead to higher trust. This challenges the common belief that simply educating people about AI will make them more comfortable with it.
Instead, it suggests that healthcare providers need to focus on transparency and clear communication. If hospitals explain how AI tools work, how they are tested for safety, and how they are monitored, patients might feel more confident about their use.
Overall, the study shows that trust in AI is still a major issue, and healthcare providers need to take it seriously. As AI continues to play a larger role in medicine, building public confidence will be just as important as improving the technology itself.
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The research findings can be found in JAMA Network Open.
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