The rapid integration of Artificial intelligence (AI) into healthcare offers both groundbreaking opportunities and significant challenges. Regis held the first installment in its fall President’s Lecture Series on Health with an online presentation panel titled “Navigating the AI Odyssey: Revealing the Promises and Perils” on Wed, Oct. 23. The presentation explored the balance between unprecedented advancements and both potential ethical and practical challenges that arise with artificial intelligence use in healthcare. With input from Adam Landman, MD, Anna Schoenbaum, DNP, and Katherine Goodman, PhD, the discussion covered how AI is transforming healthcare.

“Technology is not all bad,” said Adam Landman, MD, MS, MIS, MHS, Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. “Can we actually use technology to put the humanism back in healthcare?”  

His presentation centered around the issue of clinician burnout. Dr. Landman highlighted an issue known as “basket burden,” the administrative overload faced by clinicians managing electronic messages. An AI tool to generate responses to inbox messages as well as to quickly automate different charting processes was tested at local hospitals. Although clinician uptake for message automation was low, AI charting was positively well-integrated into the healthcare setting. This offers evidence that AI support can possibly alleviate some administrative overload and allow clinicians to focus more on patient care. 

Anna Schoenbaum, DNP, MS, RN-C, FHIMSS, Vice President of Applications and Digital Health at Penn Medicine, then presented the “bright side” of AI, noting its potential in improving diagnostics, customizing treatments, and analyzing data. Additionally, she discussed how AI can accelerate drug discovery as well as better analyze drug efficacy and toxicity. Along with all the potential benefits, she emphasized the conclusion that “whatever you do, you need to involve the clinician. They need to be part of the loop.” Schoenbaum highlighted how these breakthroughs are already affecting patient outcomes, demonstrating AI’s capability to augment medical professionals’ capabilities. 

The final speaker, Katherine Goodman, PhD, JD, and Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University of Maryland, discussed the “shadows” of AI in healthcare. Dr. Goodman focused on critical issues such as AI algorithm accuracy, data privacy, bias, and regulatory concerns.

Faulty AI algorithms can reinforce biases already present in healthcare data, potentially leading to unequal treatment outcomes for diverse patient populations, she shared. Goodman also says that there is a current problem where “an algorithm is accurate in some groups, but not in others. And we call that differential performance; and in that case the algorithm is biased.” Dr. Goodman stressed that strict oversight of this technology is necessary, or  AI might amplify current disparities in healthcare. 

The Regis College President’s Lecture Series on Health offers dynamic and thought-provoking discussions about contemporary health and wellness issues. Established in 2007 in partnership with Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, a Point32Health company, this unique series of free lectures features industry experts addressing timely topics for the benefit of health care professionals, students, and members of the public. 

This President’s Lecture Series panel was approved for two contact hours for nurses by the American Nurses Association Massachusetts (ANA Mass.). ANA Mass. is accredited as an approver of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.