Myths and truths of artificial intelligence

Photo: Alex Knight

Over the last decade, AI has been adopted in many different areas of our lives. Technology around us is constantly developing and changing. This includes AI technology as well. The world of healthcare has seen more and more benefits with the usage of AI. However, this has also raised some myths surrounding AI, namely conversational AI. In this article, we are going to take a look at some of the myths and truths of artificial intelligence. Furthermore, we will explain what conversational AI is and how it can be incorporated into healthcare systems.

Conversational AI - In short

The majority of myths and misconceptions are born out of a lack of knowledge regarding conversational AI. That is why it is important to briefly explain what a conversational AI is before we go any further. Conversational AI is essentially a type of AI that enables humans to have a regular, completely natural conversation with AI. It can do this because of the natural language processing engine that powers it. As you might have guessed already, this kind of AI functions similarly to chatbots but it has far more abilities than a regular chatbot. Personalized conversations and reliable communication are possible by using NLP(natural language processing) and machine learning to understand the human language properly.

Today conversational AI is no longer the future but our reality. They are being utilized more and more and this goes for healthcare as well. However, as mentioned above, this has caused certain myths to arise. So, let us now take a closer look at some of the myths and actual truths surrounding the usage and abilities of conversational AI.

Myth: AI might endanger data and privacy

One of the major concerns with the usage of AI especially in the world of healthcare is that privacy and data are at risk with conversational AI. Some people do not like the idea that a bot out there can gather information about them and their healthcare journey. People are concerned that a conversational AI gathers all of the information and data as well as things that are not related to the patient's questions during the conversation with them. However, what do the facts say?

Truth:

The fact is, when done properly, conversation AI can bring a lot more security and protection to data and the privacy of patients. With a conversational AI being able to schedule appointments, reschedule them, provide you with the necessary information related to your clinic's services or schedules, and so on, patients no longer have to give any personal information to agents in call centers. So, AI can verify the identity of a patient and securely collect data without a human intermediary.

Myth: Conversational AI will take away human jobs entirely

One myth that usually is very persistent with AI, in general, is the idea that AI will slowly take over and human jobs will become entirely redundant. As bots become more sophisticated and capable of handling inquiries better, people are concerned that human work will be replaced.

Truth:

Conversational AI cannot work without human support and a dedicated team that is behind it. Furthermore, many customer service functions can be automated with conversational AI which leaves clinic's agents or representatives free to focus on more demanding tasks. By helping to automate certain tasks, AI essentially also helps free up space for more jobs. Finally, as mentioned above, a human team that builds AI and helps to improve it is also essential. AI cannot function entirely on its own. Conversational AI needs to be coached and updated as well. This creates more jobs as well.

Myth: A human element is lost in conversation with an AI

Perhaps the biggest myth and concern people have when talking about AI in healthcare is that conversing with an AI will never replace a real human. So, according to this myth, empathy, understanding, and an overall, human element could be lacking when communicating with a conversational AI.

Truth:

The real truth is that conversational AI can not only maintain proper communication with patients, but it can also enhance it as well. An NLP-powered AI fully built to manage healthcare interactions can greatly benefit clinics and also enhance the patient's healthcare journey. Patients will feel as if they are talking to a real person. Conversational AI constantly learns and develops from each interaction. This significantly lowers the margin for error. It learns the best way to approach each patient individually based on what the patient likes or dislikes, their healthcare journey, services they need, and so on. Conversational AI that is built exclusively for healthcare can understand the needs of patients better than most agents working in call centers.

AI myths and truths - In summary

So, to conclude this article, we can see that many of the myths come from a misunderstanding of what a conversational AI is, how it operates, and how it can actually enhance communication between health clinics and patients. We have mentioned some of the main myths surrounding AI and provided some of the facts about it. Overall, it is safe to say that with the constantly developing AI technology, AI is here to stay for good. The benefits of utilizing the maximum capabilities of a conversational, NLP engine AI are huge. In conclusion, proactive and humanized care has a very positive impact on patients and AI can fully deliver this. Additionally, AI can also help clinics with many other digital services such as scheduling, rescheduling, managing agendas, and much more!