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AI adoption in healthcare moves faster than readiness
AI is improving patient care and clinician experience, but health systems are still falling short in providing the right tools and training, a new report shows.
Though AI is making good on its promises to improve clinician well-being, expand clinical capacity and support clinical decision-making, adoption is outpacing health systems' readiness to integrate these tools.
Most healthcare professionals (72%) turn to personal AI tools when the options provided by their health systems don't meet their needs, according to a report from Royal Philips.
"This suggests that clinician demand for AI is moving quickly -- sometimes faster than organizations can respond -- as healthcare professionals use publicly available tools alongside those provided by their organizations," the report stated.
The report is based on two surveys from February to April 2026. One survey polled 202 U.S.-based healthcare professionals, and the other polled 2,000 U.S. patients.
AI boosts clinician workflows, well-being
The report revealed the extent to which AI is reshaping clinical workflows. About 52% of healthcare professionals use AI to transcribe notes, 46% as a 'buddy' to discuss work-related ideas, 45% to suggest diagnoses based on patient symptoms and 44% to identify dangerous drug combinations.
By and large, healthcare professionals are optimistic about AI adoption in healthcare. A majority (84%) believe that AI can improve patient outcomes, and approximately 27% said that AI has helped them identify or prevent a potential medical error at least three times in the past three months.
Another 58% said AI is making them more confident in their clinical decision-making, while 54% said the technology is improving their decision-making speed. More than half (58%) reported improvements in workflow efficiency due to AI.
Not only that, but about a third of healthcare professionals also said that AI has improved their work-life balance (35%) and reduced their stress (36%). Nearly half (49%) reported saving an average of 132 hours annually, leaving them free to keep abreast of research and clinical developments (61%).
In addition, 36% of healthcare professionals said that AI has increased their capacity to see more patients.
Health systems struggle to keep up with adoption
According to the report, AI adoption is moving faster than health systems' readiness to integrate these tools. Nearly three-quarters of healthcare professionals (72%) use personal AI tools when health system-sanctioned tools fall short.
Further, healthcare professionals point to gaps in training for AI utilization. Most (77%) said training for AI-enabled tools is unavailable, limited or inconsistent. They highlighted the urgent need for support in checking the accuracy of AI recommendations (63%), developing technical navigation skills (53%) and understanding legal liability (52%).
A vast majority of healthcare professionals (93%) said it's essential to keep a human in the loop for AI utilization, citing concerns about potential errors (76%), inconsistent performance across clinical settings (70%) and a lack of transparency in AI recommendations (67%).
AI is enhancing patient preparedness, but misinformation persists
Additionally, AI is empowering patients to take a more active role in their care, the report showed. Nearly half of patient respondents said AI tools help them ask their doctor better questions (47%), feel more informed about their health (45%) and make the most of their appointment (41%).
Most healthcare professionals (67%) said AI-empowered patients will be an integral part of care teams in the future. However, AI-generated misinformation is causing challenges: 65% of healthcare professionals say they have had to correct it, taking time away from more pressing patient care protocols during appointments.
Still, 72% of healthcare professionals said that the benefits of AI already outweigh the risks.
By connecting disparate workflows to create AI ecosystems, investing in role-specific AI training and redesigning care to include AI-empowered providers and patients, health systems can provide more personalized and enhanced care, the report stated.
Anuja Vaidya has covered the healthcare industry since 2012. She currently covers healthcare IT and innovation, including artificial intelligence, digital healthcare, EHRs and interoperability.
