How should physicians respond when patients reference medical information from AI?

Highlights

• Approach patient interactions with curiosity and empathy, as dismissing AI-generated information can quickly erode the foundation of trust.
• Rather than focusing on the AI source, physicians should respond directly to the patient’s specific question with factual information.
• Consider entering a patient's question into an AI model during the visit to engage with their information source directly.
• Emphasize that clinical experience and nuanced perspective are what physicians add to the often correct but imperfect AI-generated answers.
• Physicians must prepare for this shift by familiarizing themselves with AI outputs while maintaining a healthy skepticism of the technology.

Expert Insights

As patients increasingly arrive at appointments armed with information from artificial intelligence, clinicians face the new challenge of how to respond effectively. Expert consensus suggests that dismissing this information is a clinical and relational misstep. Instead, a nuanced approach that prioritizes trust, addresses the specific clinical question, and proactively engages with the technology is paramount for maintaining the therapeutic alliance and ensuring high-quality care.

Prioritizing the Therapeutic Alliance

The initial response to a patient referencing AI should be grounded in empathy and curiosity, not dismissal. Neurosurgeon Dr. Rohan Ramakrishna frames AI, alongside social media, as "the new Dr. Google." He cautions that the wrong response, particularly in a "harried work environment," is to reject these sources as unproven or misleading, even when they are. Dr. Ramakrishna emphasizes that establishing trust is the foundational goal of the interaction. "We have to approach our interactions with patients with deep curiosity and empathy if we have any hope of establishing trust," he states. Without that trust, he argues, "we can't ever hope to persuade." This perspective positions the physician's response not as a simple factual correction, but as a critical moment to strengthen the patient-provider relationship.

We have to approach our interactions with patients with deep curiosity and empathy if we have any hope of establishing trust. Dr. Rohan Ramakrishna

Responding to the Question, Not the Source

Once a foundation of trust is established, the focus can shift to the clinical content of the patient's query. According to Dr. Amanda Adeleye, a reproductive endocrinologist, the origin of the information is less important than its substance. "As with any other data source, we should respond to patients with facts," she advises. The key is to de-emphasize the medium and focus on the message. "Rather than respond to the category of information that a patient references, we should aim to respond to the specific question," Dr. Adeleye explains. This approach validates the patient's inquiry while steering the conversation toward an evidence-based discussion, avoiding a potentially adversarial debate about the reliability of AI as a source.

A Proactive and Collaborative Strategy

Beyond reacting to patient-initiated queries, clinicians can adopt a more forward-thinking and collaborative stance. Dr. Joseph Letourneau, a reproductive endocrinologist, predicts that patient reliance on AI for medical information will become nearly universal and urges physicians to prepare accordingly, much as they would have with textbooks in the past. He has integrated a novel technique into his practice to foster transparency and build rapport. "If a patient asks a question, before I respond I might literally enter their question into AI and see what it says," he explains.

This strategy serves two purposes. First, it allows the physician to understand the information landscape the patient is navigating. Second, it creates an opportunity for a more sophisticated dialogue. Dr. Letourneau notes that he is "often frankly impressed by AI" and that it "often has a great answer." By acknowledging the technology's utility, he can then "provide additional perspective on top of that: insights from actual experience and similar context." He believes this transparency—acknowledging that "everyone’s engaged with the same technology"—is essential for building trust. He cautions, however, that while AI's information is "pretty close to correct most of the time, we still have to be skeptical of it."

This info is now better in many ways than ever before, but still imperfect and lacking the perspective of providers. That’s why we’re here. Dr. Joseph Letourneau

Synthesizing a Clinical Approach

Ultimately, the physician’s role is not to compete with AI but to contextualize its output. The expert perspectives converge on a multi-layered strategy: begin with empathy to preserve trust, address the specific clinical question with facts, and consider proactively using AI as a conversational tool to align with the patient. The irreplaceable value of the clinician lies in providing the nuance, individualized risk assessment, and experiential wisdom that algorithms lack. By embracing this role, physicians can transform a potentially challenging interaction into an opportunity to educate, build rapport, and guide the patient toward the most appropriate clinical path.