How ChatGPT Is Reshaping Doctor Patient Conversations

The New Player in the Exam Room

The familiar dynamic of a doctor's appointment is changing. While patients have long turned to the internet for medical information, the arrival of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tools like ChatGPT is introducing a new level of sophistication to pre-visit research. This shift is creating a new kind of conversation in clinics everywhere.

Physicians are increasingly encountering patients who arrive not just with questions, but with confident, data-driven suggestions. This can sometimes feel like a challenge to their medical expertise, a trend highlighted in a recent article in JAMA.

An AI-Informed Patient Encounter

Dr. Kumara Raja Sundar, a family medicine physician at Kaiser Permanente Burien Medical Center, shared a compelling example of this new reality. A patient came to his clinic complaining of dizziness, but described her symptoms with remarkable clinical precision.

“It’s not vertigo, but more like a presyncope feeling,” she stated, already using specific medical jargon. She didn't stop there; she went on to suggest that a tilt table test might be the right diagnostic tool for her condition.

Intrigued by her advanced vocabulary, Dr. Sundar asked if she had a background in healthcare. The patient revealed her source was not a medical textbook or a personal connection, but ChatGPT. The AI had analyzed her symptoms and recommended the specific test.

Navigating the Future of Patient Care

This encounter illustrates a significant evolution from patients simply "Googling" their symptoms. AI can synthesize information and provide direct, actionable recommendations, blurring the lines of expertise. To understand more about how physicians are adapting to this AI-driven shift in patient interactions, you can explore the full story over at Medscape.