KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDE AND PERCEPTION OF HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS AND MEDICAL STUDENTS TOWARDS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

Abstract

1. Background: We cannot negate the need of AI in facilitating a clinician specially once the ratio of doctors to patients is very low, however it must not come at the cost of breach of patient autonomy and confidentiality. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no doubt changing the landscape of healthcare sector by increasing accuracy of diagnosis, facilitating in going for accurate patient centered management plan. It can only be achieved by fostering the culture of more educational workshops and training for both undergraduate medical students and faculty. So it’s important to look at how medical professionals approach towards adopting AI into their current practice keeping in view various barriers and its implication for all the stakeholders.  
2. Objective: The aim of the study is to look the current knowledge, attitude, and perception of both healthcare professionals and medical students towards Artificial Intelligence (AI), and to find out the potential barriers in successful integration of AI in healthcare industry.
3. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among healthcare professionals and medical students using a structured questionnaire. The tool assessed participants’ knowledge of AI, attitudes towards its integration into clinical practice, perceptions of its benefits, limitations and ethical consideration. SPSS is employed for primarily descriptive statistics and appropriate inferential tests, chi-square to explore associations between categorical variables and Mann-Whitney U test to explore associations between ordinal variables and qualification level.
4. Results: A total of 382 participants responded to the survey. The majority of the participants had moderate to low levels of knowledge about AI, although attitudes were generally positive. Many participants acknowledged the scope of AI in improving healthcare provision but expressed concerns over ethical issues, data privacy, and the potential replacement of human healthcare professionals. A statistically significant association was found between qualification level and AI-related training and awareness (p < 0.05).
5. Conclusion: While healthcare professionals and medical students showed a positive attitude towards AI, their limited knowledge highlights the need for formal education and training in this domain. Integrating AI-related content into medical curricula could enhance preparedness for future healthcare setting where AI will play a pivotal role.

• Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, AI, Healthcare Professionals, Medical Students, Knowledge, Attitude, Perception, Medical Education.