Knowledge of and Attitudes on Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: A Provincial Survey Study of Medical Students

Abstract

ABSTRACT Background There has been growing acknowledgement that undergraduate medical education (UME) must play a formal role in instructing future physicians on the promises and limitations of artificial intelligence (AI), as these tools are integrated into medical practice. Methods We conducted an exploratory survey of medical students’ knowledge of AI, perceptions on the role of AI in medicine, and preferences surrounding the integration of AI competencies into medical education. The survey was completed by 321 medical students (13.4% response rate) at four medical schools in Ontario. Results Medical students are generally optimistic regarding AI’s capabilities to carry out a variety of healthcare functions, from clinical to administrative, with reservations about specific task types such as personal counselling and empathetic care. They believe AI will raise novel ethical and social challenges. Students are concerned about how AI will affect the medical job market, with 25% responding that it was actively impacting their choice of specialty. Students agree that medical education must do more to prepare them for the impact of AI in medicine (79%), and the majority (68%) believe that this training should begin at the UME level. Conclusions Medical students expect AI will be widely integrated into healthcare and are enthusiastic to obtain AI competencies in undergraduate medical education.

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