AI for Health Professionals. Opportunities and Challenges of AI Applications in Health and Care Settings

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can ease the workload of healthcare workers and improve patient care. Health and nursing care professionals are essentially open to the use of technology but are calling for technological and organisational changes to their day-to-day work in inpatient and outpatient settings so that patients and personnel alike can benefit from the AI systems.

These are the key results of a process of qualitative dialogue involving health and nursing care professionals that was carried out by Plattform Lernende Systeme’s Health Care, Medical Technology, Care working group. From AI-based decision support in kidney transplants to AI support for care staff in treating bedsores: professionals see plenty of opportunities for the use of AI but also mention various challenges and conditions for the successful use of AI. The health professionals surveyed see AI as promising especially when it comes to easing their workload in relation to routine tasks, support for diagnoses and therapeutic decisions as well as in nursing care. The health professionals regard existing AI skills, lack of digital infrastructure in inpatient and outpatient settings as well as access to high-quality data to be the biggest challenges.