How Tech Can Turn Doctors into Clerical Workers
Title of New York Times Article
I bounced the above article among several of my doc buddies. The conversation went like: “You spent 10 years going to med school. Now, you push paper. And, BTW: you may be replaced by a robot.” “Huh. Yeah. Well. ….”
Not good for one of the most respected professions. But, an undisputable sign of concern among one of the most lucrative and immensely respected professions that saved many during the COVID pandemic. It’s all about medical disruption. Medical learning machines can assess, diagnose and even predict increasingly better than medical professionals. AI can predict cancers. AI can diagnose skin cancer better than dermatologists. AI can predict seizures better than neurologists. In the near future the machine will be able to look at many health markers and predict a person’s lifespan with 95% certainty. [i] If MD’s are highly pedigreed clerical workers, one physician asked: “It’s enough to make doctors like myself wonder why we spent a decade in medical training learning the art of diagnosis and treatment.”[ii]
Patients are also getting smarter. Patients are quickly learning that they can get a virtual diagnosis cheaply and quickly through the web. Think about when you went to a doctor what did you do? Probably, you went to WebMD to check out your symptoms and see what you’ve probably got. Then, you go to the doctor to get a real diagnosis and second opinion.
Docs are asking the same question: ‘what do prospective doctors want to be when they grow up’? There was an interesting article in LinkedIn about how tech is attracting young doctors. The numbers are stunning. For example, 47% of young doctors and pharmacists are interested in moving to tech. Why? These early career risk-takers are lured by the vision of meaningful and substantive work at higher pay. They’re told that med schools, business schools, and traditional companies are no longer the highest meal ticket and the best problem for hustle-oriented VUCANs.[iii]
Work Lesson Earned: So, what’s the future of medicine and doctors? They will provide patients with a second opinion after a machine algorithm diagnosis. The docs will review the algorithm’s assessment, diagnosis, and ethical biases. They may provide the human touch of patient communications, intuition, judgment, understanding, and empathy.
[i] ‘A.I. Could Worsen Health Disparities’, New York Times, January 31, 2019.
[ii] ‘A.I. Could Worsen Health Disparities’, New York Times, January 31, 2019.
[iii] ‘Tech Collars Young Doctors, Bankers’, LinkedIn, December 17, 2018.