The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare offers unprecedented opportunities to improve patient and clinical team outcomes, reduce costs, and impact population health. Yet it is imperative to balance the need for thoughtful, inclusive healthcare AI with potential unintended consequences, such as marketing hype and technology-driven disparities. A new National Academy of Medicine (NAM) Special Publication titled “Artificial Intelligence in Health Care: The Hope, the Hype, the Promise, the Peril” was co-edited by Michael E. Matheny, MD, MS, MPH, Associate Director of VA’s Informatics and Computing Infrastructure (VINCI) and an HSR&D affiliate investigator and general internist with the Geriatrics Research Education and Clinical Care Service at Tennessee Valley Healthcare System; Sonoo Thadaney Israni, MBA, Stanford Medicine; Mahnoor Ahmed, National Academies of Sciences; and Danielle Whicher, PhD, MHS, Mathematica. This Special Publication:
This Publication is viewed as a reference document for all stakeholders involved in AI, healthcare, or the intersection of the two. Publication authors advise caution in implementing this technology, emphasizing the need to prioritize human connections between clinicians and patients, as well as the need to focus on equity and inclusion. AI has the potential to revolutionize healthcare, however, new technologies must be supported by appropriate and adequate education and training, and all technologies should be properly regulated and supported by tailored legislation.
The National Academy of Medicine, established in 1970 as the Institute of Medicine, is an independent organization of eminent professionals from diverse fields including health and medicine; the natural, social, and behavioral sciences; and beyond. The views presented in this Special Publication are those of the authors and do not represent formal consensus positions of the NAM; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; or the authors’ organizations.
Matheny M, Whicher D, and Israni ST. Artificial Intelligence in Health Care: A report from the National Academy of Medicine. JAMA Network. Viewpoint. December 17, 2019; Epub ahead of print.
