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

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.

Health Care Students’ Perspectives on Artificial Intelligence: Countrywide Survey in Canada

“…A 2020 European survey showed that only one-third of the medical students surveyed stated that they had a basic knowledge of AI [ 16 ]. A 2021 survey of medical students in Ontario showed that respondents believed that they understood what AI meant; however, when asked about specific terminologies related to AI, such as machine learning or neural networks, students did not understand them [ 22 ]. A major limitation of these studies was that knowledge of AI was assessed using the self-reported perception of AI understanding using Likert scales.…”

“…In fact, students with high school as their highest level of education did not differ significantly from students who had completed a PhD. There is evidence to suggest that there is a larger emphasis placed on AI application in higher education, with most research focusing on undergraduate students over postgraduate students [ 22 ]. In terms of professional interests, students who wished to pursue research or entrepreneurship in their careers had a more favorable outlook on AI than those who wished to focus on clinical work.…”

“…The survey was developed from a narrative literature review of topics in attitudinal surveys on AI [ 15 , 16 , 18 , 21 , 22 ]. Attitudinal questions such as Likert scale belief questions were adopted from previous surveys directed toward radiology residents and US citizens [ 16 , 21 ].…”

Yapay Zeka ve Sağlıkta Yapay Zekanın Kullanımına Yönelik Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi Öğrencilerinin Görüşleri

“…Nitekim çalışmamızdaki öğrencilerin çoğunluğu yapay zeka sistemlerinin, kendilerine öğretilmediği sürece etik anlayışlarının olmadığı görüşündedir. Kanada'da tıp fakültesi öğrencileri ile yapılan bir çalışmada, katılımcı öğrencilerin büyük çoğunluğu yapay zekanın yeni etik zorluklar ortaya çıkaracağı görüşünü bildirmiştir [25]. Geleceğin sağlık profesyonelleri olarak, öğrencilerinin teknolojik gelişmeler yoluyla hassas ve örselenebilir popülasyonları korumak için hasta savunuculuğu rollerini ön planda tutmaları gerekecektir [12].…”

“…Anketin açık uçlu sorular bölümüne verilen öğrenci yanıtlarının tematik analizi, öğrencilerin sağlıkta yapay zeka kullanımına ilişkin olumlu ve olumsuz yönde farklı düşüncelere sahip olduğunu, gelecekteki uygulamalara yönelik endişeler taşıdıklarını göstermiştir. Literatürde, tıp ve sağlık bilimleri öğrencilerin de bu endişeleri taşıdığı bulunmuştur [22,[24][25][26]. Son dönemde robotlar yüzünden insanların işlerini kaybedecek olması düşüncesi yapay zeka teknolojisini hakkında en büyük endişelerden biri olarak görülmektedir.…”