Not all clinicians are happy with the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare settings, and nurses at Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center have taken to the streets to voice their concerns.
Gathering outside the hospital Apr. 22, members of the California Nurses Association labor union said much of the AI being adopted isn’t properly regulated or tested, and they feel care delivery is losing the necessary human touch.
“Nurses are all for tech that enhances our skills and the patient care experience. But what we are witnessing in our hospitals is the degradation and devaluation of our nursing practice through the use of these untested technologies,” California Nurses Association president Michelle Gutierrez, RN, from Kaiser Permanente Fremont Medical Center, said in a statement. “As patient advocates, we are obligated to speak out. We demand that workers and unions be involved at every step of the development of data-driven technologies and be empowered to decide whether and how AI is deployed in the workplace.”
According to the nurses, Kaiser San Francisco is one of the earliest adopters of new AI, but they see the increase in automation for diagnostics, care delivery and administrative tasks as a nationwide problem, one where people are slowly being replaced by algorithms for the benefits of business interests as opposed to clinical staff and patients.
In their statement, the nurses said they think the erosion of clinical expertise is a threat to patient safety, eliminating many person-to-person interactions that are integral to the healthcare experience for everyone. They’re asking hospitals to slow pilot testing on new AI applications, especially those that eliminate hands-on care.
More protests are likely to happen in the future as the issues surrounding AI become more of a focus for nursing unions. For now, there does not seem to be any specific demands, and the demonstration was more for public awareness, calling on nurses from across California to participate.
Chad is an award-winning writer and editor with over 15 years of experience working in media. He has a decade-long professional background in healthcare, working as a writer and in public relations.