Rather than discussing whether AI should be used for health advice, all efforts should focus on ensuring the information given is accurate. 

One in seven people in the UK have used AI for health advice instead of contacting a GP, according to a new study. The research, by King’s College London, also found that one in five people who sought health advice from a chatbot said it did not encourage them to seek a professional opinion.

The findings, one healthcare technology leader said, show that debates about whether patients should use AI at all are now “futile”. 

Instead, the focus should be on ensuring the information powering AI is accurate and trustworthy, said Stephanie Eltz, a former NHS surgeon and chief executive of healthcare platform Doctify. 

The “infrastructure and information” needed to generate responses without compromising safety must be prioritised, Eltz added. 

Her comments come as OpenAI reports that health-related queries account for around five per cent of all chatbot conversations globally, with one in four of ChatGPT’s 800 million regular users submitting a health prompt every week.

Doctify, which allows patients to search for and review healthcare providers, has seen a 680% year-on-year increase in traffic arriving on its platform directly from AI-generated searches.

This reflects a shift away from traditional search engines, as patients increasingly use conversational AI to explore symptoms, treatments and healthcare providers.

Eltz said the technology industry must ensure AI systems rely on verified, evidence-based information rather than unverified online content, while also guiding and encouraging patients to see a doctor. 

The King’s College researchers said the growing use of AI for health advice underlines the need to ensure people continue to access professional medical care when it is needed.

The study was conducted by King’s Health Partners, Responsible AI UK and the Policy Institute at King’s College London. The findings are based on answers from a survey of nearly 2,100 adults, which took place in March. 

The most common reasons people gave for using AI chatbots for health advice were convenience, curiosity and uncertainty about whether their concern was serious enough to contact a GP. A quarter said they did so because they were waiting too long for NHS services.