Most parents support the use of AI in their child's medical care
New survey data are offering detailed insight into how parents and caregivers perceive the use of artificial intelligence in the care of their children.
According to the responses, not only do many parents and caregivers approve of the use of AI for their children’s care, but a majority also believe it may be even more accurate than physicians when it comes to detecting imaging abnormalities. Researchers published their findings in Insights Into Imaging.
“Stakeholder engagement is critical for the successful deployment and adoption of AI applications in healthcare. It is especially important to understand what drives patient trust and acceptability, as these tools primarily impact their care,” Girija Agarwal, MD, of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, and colleagues noted. “In pediatric radiology, stakeholder engagement not only needs to take the opinion of the patient, but must also consider the views of their parents or caregivers. Nevertheless, despite the importance of this factor, most published work has focused mostly on the perspectives of medical healthcare professionals, with fewer studies assessing the attitudes of parents or caregivers.”
The survey was distributed to parents and caregivers across the United Kingdom between 2022 and 2023. It queried respondents on their perceptions of AI in general and included questions on its use in specific circumstances, such as fracture detection, with respect to children’s healthcare.
Of the 146 respondents, 64% indicated they believed AI would be more accurate than physicians at interpreting pediatric X-rays, though 66% expressed preference for human supervision. Male respondents were more likely to support the use of AI, though they were also significantly more skeptical about how the technology could put their children’s personal data at risk. The majority (71%) said they believed providers should ask for parents’ consent before utilizing AI as part of their child’s care.
“These findings illustrate the importance of involving a variety of stakeholders in surveys to accurately represent the varied opinions of parents/carers,” the authors wrote. “To instil trust in AI tools, radiology departments should provide literature regarding the AI they intend to introduce, promote transparency for performance and details regarding accountability and safety measures, and explore a way to consent patients for use where possible,” they added later.
Read more about the findings here.
In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.