Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming talked about more in many fields. Healthcare is one of them. In the United States, medical practice leaders, owners, and IT managers need to understand how generative AI can affect healthcare costs and access. This is especially true for underserved groups who often find it hard to get care. This article looks at how generative AI is changing healthcare today. It also shows how it might help with costs and easier access by improving practical uses and workflows.
Recent surveys show that both people using healthcare and healthcare workers think generative AI could help make healthcare easier to get and cheaper. A 2023 survey by Deloitte found that 53% of healthcare users believe generative AI could help improve access to care. Also, 46% think AI might make healthcare more affordable. People who have used generative AI themselves are even more positive. About 69% say it helped them get better access to care, and 63% saw cost benefits.
In healthcare administration, budgets and patient happiness are very important. These numbers show that more people are open to using AI solutions to fix problems like burnout among doctors, rising costs, and reaching underserved patients. As Dr. Asif Dhar said, many health systems have problems like worker shortages and inflation. These add pressure to provide care quickly without lowering quality.
Many underserved people in the U.S. have trouble getting healthcare on time and at a price they can afford. This happens because they might not have insurance, might have trouble with transport, or live in places with few doctors. Generative AI might help fix these problems.
One big way AI helps is by supporting people without insurance or with poor coverage. The Deloitte survey showed that uninsured people are more likely to use generative AI to find health information or services. Only 33% of uninsured users said the AI information was helpful, compared to 51% of insured users, but the fact they use it shows the potential. This is an area where healthcare groups can improve how AI is used to help uninsured people better.
Generative AI can give medical advice outside normal office hours. Chatbots and virtual helpers can answer patient questions, check symptoms, and guide patients to the right care place. This is very helpful for people who can’t visit clinics easily because of transport or schedules. Hospitals and health systems are trying out these ideas. About 53% are testing generative AI, and 27% are trying to use it throughout their organization.
Some groups that work with underserved people have started using AI to study patient data. This helps them find patients at high risk and give them the care they need. For example, Kern Health Systems uses AI to combine member data and automate tasks like wellness calls and appointment reminders. This helps patients get care on time and can stop costly emergency visits.
Another example is Centene’s Start Smart for Baby program. It uses machine learning to find risks like high blood pressure in pregnant women. It looks at things like race, ethnicity, and language. This helps provide better care for different groups and cuts down health differences.
Doctors like Pooja Mittal say AI can study messy electronic health records (EHR) so providers can focus on patients better. Still, problems exist, especially in rural areas where internet and modern EHR systems are poor. This shows that more money and training are needed for community clinics to make sure these areas also benefit from technology.
It is very important that AI use in healthcare is clear and open. Surveys show 80% of people want healthcare workers to tell them when AI is being used in their care. Trust matters a lot with underserved groups, who may distrust the medical system because of past experiences. Traco Matthews, MBA, says trusted messengers and education are needed to reduce fear and doubts about AI.
Healthcare managers must create rules to make sure AI is used ethically. The Deloitte study found that 83% of healthcare groups are making or planning rules for responsible AI use. These rules help keep patient trust and stop bias in AI, which can otherwise keep unfair treatment going.
For clinic and hospital managers, smooth front-office work is very important for patient experience and efficiency. Generative AI can help by automating many front desk jobs. This allows staff to work on harder patient needs.
Simbo AI is a company that works on AI phone automation for front offices. Their tools fit well with healthcare needs to make access better and costs lower. Automating tasks like scheduling appointments, answering questions, and handling calls after hours helps clinics manage many patients smoothly. This is especially important when there are not enough staff. AI systems make sure patients get quick replies without adding more work to employees.
AI phone systems can answer common questions about symptoms, medicine, and care instructions in a steady and reliable way. This cuts down on missed calls and no-shows for appointments. It also boosts patient satisfaction. These AI phone tools support better patient access, which matters most for underserved groups that face extra communication problems.
AI is also useful beyond the front office. It helps improve clinical work to boost care quality and efficiency. For example, AI can help sort patients before in-person visits by suggesting next steps based on symptoms. It can also spot urgent cases fast. This helps lower extra emergency visits and makes sure patients get the right care quickly.
Training AI to study large amounts of EHR data helps doctors find patterns and risks they might miss otherwise. Dr. Pooja Mittal’s work shows how AI can scan messy data to find important medical details quickly. This helps make better decisions.
On the admin side, AI can handle routine tasks like sending patient reminders, checking insurance, and making follow-up calls. This lowers staff workload and errors. More efficiency also means lower costs for hospitals, which can lead to cheaper bills for patients.
Even though generative AI can help, some problems still need fixing. Unequal access to technology, especially internet in rural places, limits AI’s reach. Many safety-net clinics have old IT systems, which makes it hard and costly to add AI tools.
Mohamed Jalloh, PharmD, recommends putting AI earnings back into community health systems. This can pay for tech updates and staff training. Doing this helps make sure AI benefits don’t only reach big, rich health centers in cities.
Also, using data from many types of patients is key to prevent AI bias. AI makers and healthcare workers must include people from different races, ethnic groups, and income levels. This makes sure AI tools help all groups fairly.
For medical practice managers, owners, and IT heads in the U.S., generative AI brings both chances and duties. By choosing AI tools like Simbo AI’s front-office systems and working with clinical teams on AI for triage and data, healthcare groups can improve access and cut costs. This is especially true for underserved groups.
Being open and ethical about AI use is very important to earn patient trust. Leaders must keep making rules and educating people to lower doubts, especially in communities with past healthcare problems.
With smart plans, investment in tech, and focus on fairness, generative AI could make healthcare easier to get and less expensive. This would help all Americans, including those who need care most.
46% of surveyed consumers believe that generative AI has the potential to make healthcare more affordable, with higher optimism among those who have used the technology.
69% of consumers who have accessed generative AI for health and wellness rated the information as very or extremely reliable, indicating growing trust in the technology.
Consumers reported using generative AI to learn about medical conditions (19%), understand treatment options (16%), and improve their well-being (15%).
84% of respondents have heard of generative AI, with 48% indicating they have used the technology in some form for health.
Four in five consumers find it important for healthcare providers to disclose when generative AI is being used for their health needs, reflecting concerns about transparency.
Generative AI can be utilized to respond to patient inquiries after hours, triage patients, and provide answers about symptoms or medications, improving patient access.
Uninsured individuals are more likely to use generative AI to access healthcare services, indicating its potential role in improving care access.
83% of healthcare organizations are implementing or planning to implement governance and oversight structures for the responsible use of generative AI.
Health systems believe generative AI could transform clinical workflows, enhance patient experience, and improve health outcomes, addressing macroeconomic pressures.
As generative AI becomes more widespread, organizations must build strategies around its use, focusing on transparency, trust, and ethical considerations to maintain consumer confidence.
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