For generations, we have been convinced that ‘doctor knows best’. But now with the rise of online information, the principle is being challenged. And from anxieties about patients ‘playing doctor to criticism directed against AI, the medical establishment is resisting the threat to its decision-making. But the evidence is mounting. AI first surpassed doctors in specialist recognition tasks like X-ray assessment, as a major study published in Nature demonstrated back in 2020. Then in 2023, AI significantly outperformed doctors in a national medical exam. And in 2024, the first evidence that AI was better in general diagnosis came with the ‘Amie’ study, demonstrating that on 28 out of 32 criteria, AI was both more accurate in diagnosis and judged more empathetic by patients.
Is it time to recognise that in many fields, doctors no longer know best? Should AI hold all our medical records and use its processing power to identify trends long before doctors are able to spot them? Or must human judgement remain central to our health and to the best treatment?
Is it time to recognise that in many fields, doctors no longer know best? Should AI hold all our medical records and use its processing power to identify trends long before doctors are able to spot them? Or must human judgement remain central to our health and to the best treatment?
