Healthcare workers must be vigilant about how AI is used

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence in healthcare has drawn growing concern from nurses and health professionals. But according to researcher Katie Wells, another transformation is quietly reshaping the profession-one that could have lasting consequences for workers, patients and the future of healthcare itself.

Speaking during the AFT Nurses and Health Professionals breakfast at the AFT convention, Wells, a senior fellow at the AI Now Institute, challenged the growing influence of major technology companies in healthcare and urged frontline workers to scrutinize how AI is being used in their workplaces.

"There is no AI without Big Tech," Wells said, arguing that today's AI systems are built on vast amounts of data and computing power controlled by a handful of technology companies. "AI development has been the direct result of decades of corporate interests."

Wells encouraged health professionals to think deeply about AI's impact on all of us. "Don't ask whether AI is good or bad," she said. "Ask whether the unaccountable power AI companies are hoarding is good for society."

Throughout her presentation, Wells cited examples of AI tools being used in healthcare settings to generate clinical notes, predict patient outcomes, monitor productivity and schedule staff. While acknowledging that some technologies may improve efficiency, she warned that many systems have entered healthcare with limited independent oversight and little transparency.

"Today's AI isn't just something we use," Wells told the audience. "It's increasingly something being used on us."

Wells also highlighted the emergence of app-based staffing platforms that use algorithms to assign shifts and determine pay. She warned that these systems could reshape nursing by replacing stable employment with gig-style work.

"Different shifts will show up on different workers' phones, often for different amounts of pay. On the same day, at the same hour, at the same hospital," said Wells. "Equal pay for equal work goes out the window."

According to Wells, the greatest concern is not widespread job loss but the gradual erosion of working conditions. "What is often missed … is how AI is affecting our work today and inducing a mass degradation of work-not displacement."

The keynote concluded with a call for nurses to document how AI is affecting patient care, workplace safety and clinical decision-making. "We need your help," Wells said. "You're on the frontline."

The members in attendance left with the understanding that technology should improve patient care, not weaken the human relationships at its core.

"We must not allow AI to replace that human connection," said Vicky Byrd, RN and CEO of the Montana Nurses Association and an AFT vice president. "We embrace it to enhance what we do-never to replace it."

[Adrienne Coles/Photo credit: AFT]