In April, a California hospital in the Kaiser Permanente (KP) health system was the scene of a protest by nurses concerned about KP’s publicly stated plans to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into patient care. At the protest, California Nursing Association president Michelle Guitierrez Vo warned against the “degradation and devaluation” of nursing due to the use of “untested technologies.” These concerns mirror those in a statement delivered to the U.S. Senate’s AI Insight Forum by Bonnie Castillo, executive director of National Nurses United, who warned that AI is being deployed by numerous health systems “in attempts to outsource, devalue, deskill, and automate” nursing work.
As a nurse and a scholar specializing in AI and health equity, I understand these worries. Rapid technological change can mean job displacements and ethical dilemmas, and nurses’ concerns about health AI deserve to be taken seriously. However, it’s also important to recognize the opportunities AI presents for training our nursing workforce and improving patient care. AI can’t replace nurses, nor should any administrator or policymaker contemplate such a disastrous mistake. On the other hand, AI can help nurses and other health professionals deliver better, more efficient, more personalized care. By leveraging AI, we can not only overcome long-standing challenges, such as increasing workloads and burnout, but also elevate our practice in ways that were unimaginable a decade ago.
Nursing involves many tasks that, while necessary, are repetitive and time-consuming. The application of AI in healthcare can streamline and automate tasks such as staff scheduling, electronic health record data entry, and even some routine patient monitoring. This would allow nurses more time to engage with and care for patients—the cornerstone of our profession and the reason many of us became nurses in the first place. Another promising application for AI in healthcare is in predictive analytics to identify individual risks and outcomes and support tailored care planning that meets each patient’s unique needs. For nurses, this means engaging in highly focused care strategies guided by data; a more proactive, data-informed approach to patient care.
Health equity refers to ensuring that all people, regardless of income or social status, can access healthcare to achieve their full health potential. As nurses, we play pivotal roles in advocating for and implementing equitable health practices and addressing disparities in health outcomes among different patient groups. AI, when designed, implemented, and used in a way that aligns with ethical principles and respects the rights of all humans, can equip us to better understand these disparities and develop evidence-based interventions that close gaps in health and advance health equity for all patients.
It’s true that using AI in healthcare will require continuous learning and adaptation from all healthcare providers, including nurses. But by understanding and engaging with AI, nurses can remain at the cutting edge of health technology, keep our skills up-to-date, and help us prepare for future advances. This continuous and much needed learning will enhance our career trajectories, potentially creating new roles and responsibilities, while allowing us to provide the best care possible for our patients.
However, if nurses are to successfully integrate responsible AI into patient care, we must collaborate across disciplines. This includes working closely with technologists, ethicists, and policymakers to ensure that AI technologies used in healthcare respect patients’ privacy and autonomy, and most importantly, ensure their safety. Nurses must be involved in this process to ensure these tools meet the needs of patients and healthcare professionals and uphold standards of care that are the hallmark of our profession.
Equally importantly, we must build trust with patients, families, and communities as well as with each other. Because of their close interactions with patients and families as well as their standing as one of the most trusted professions, nurses are well positioned to lead public awareness campaigns that educate communities about how AI technologies are used in their care and help them understand their rights regarding its application in their care decisions. Nurses also are able to advocate effectively for new laws to ensure that patients have the right to transparency regarding any AI-driven decision that affects their care.
Integrating AI in healthcare brings serious challenges, but it also offers substantial opportunities for improvement and innovation in nursing practice. By embracing these changes, staying informed, and actively participating in the discourse around AI, we can ensure that it becomes a force for good, enhancing our ability to care for our patients while also advancing our professional skills. With the right approach, we can make AI our ally, augmenting our clinical abilities in our ongoing mission to provide compassionate, competent, and equitable care.
Michael Cary, PhD, RN, FAAN, is nurse and applied health data scientist at the Duke University School of Nursing in Durham, North Carolina.
