AI as your new team member

Trusting AI in Healthcare: A Clinician's Perspective

As healthcare workers, we tend to be highly resilient people who don't always trust other team members. Follow me along and I'll share what I mean.

Have you ever delegated a task to the resident on your team and then double-checked that it was done an hour later? Or asked your nurse to call a patient with results and then logged into Epic to ensure it was documented, scrolling until you see the encounter recorded?

I like to think these tendencies aren't just because we have trust issues—rather, it's because we want to ensure that our patients are getting the right care at the right time. As clinicians, we have the inside track on seeing unnecessary delays for all sorts of milestones in one's healthcare journey: delayed discharge due to a med rec getting put off, an anxious patient spending another evening in limbo because they fell down the priority list of what could reasonably be accomplished that day, or watching a patient or family member go without critical information that could have provided comfort, aided in decision-making, or simply offered clarity on next steps.

We've all seen examples just like these, and our hypervigilance regarding expedient care reflects our commitment to quality. We want to give good care and ensure milestone steps are followed promptly.

The Culture Shift Challenge

With this background, I recognize that delegating patient education to AI feels like a significant culture shift in our ecosystem. The idea of trusting a non-human entity with something so critical to patient care goes against every instinct we've developed as healthcare providers.

And yet, while there are admittedly still milestones to hit regarding complete trust, this technology can completely revolutionize access to critical information for patients. Consider the current reality: how many times have patients left your office confused about their diagnosis, forgotten half of what you explained, or called back with questions that could have been prevented with better initial education?

AI as Your Reliable Team Member

Here's what's different about AI-powered patient education: while we want to do it all ourselves, for the first time we can have a hand in building a product made for patients by clinicians who understand this strain. The key is allowing help from a non-human team member who doesn't forget, doesn't sleep, and doesn't get distracted.

Think of AI not as a replacement, but as that dependable team member who consistently delivers the same high-quality information every time—the one who never has a bad day, never forgets to follow up, and never leaves critical details out of patient instructions.

The Evidence for Change

Research shows that patients retain only 10-20% of what physicians tell them during appointments. Meanwhile, studies indicate that well-designed patient education can improve medication adherence by up to 25% and reduce readmission rates significantly. AI-powered education tools can bridge this gap by delivering consistent, personalized information when patients need it most—at their own pace, in their preferred format, and as many times as necessary.

Building Trust Together

Let's lean into AI as another member of the healthcare team who can be trusted to deliver content on your behalf. Allow this new team member to become dependable in a service-oriented role, which will enable you to focus on the human conversations that require your clinical expertise and empathy.

AI will change the healthcare landscape forever. With Iris Health AI, we want you to have a seat at the table, ensuring content is made for you and your patients—by clinicians, for clinicians.

Let's build the future of patient education together.