Journal Article

Shaping the future: perspectives on the Integration of Artificial Intelligence in health profession education: a multi-country survey

Radwan, Hadia, Abdelrahim, Dana N., Khasawneh, Wafa, Shorbagi, Ali, Hijazi, Heba, Ali, Ibrahim, Abbas, Nada, Al-Sharman, Alham, Rababa, Mohammad, Al-Majeed, Khalid, Issa, Wegdan Bani, Al-Yateem, Nabeel, Mottershead, Richard, Refaat Ahmed, Fatma, Fakhry, Randa

2024

Overview

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming health profession education (HPE) through personalized learning technologies. HPE students must also learn about AI to understand its impact on healthcare delivery. We examined HPE students’ AI-related knowledge and attitudes, and perceived challenges in integrating AI in HPE. Methods This cross-sectional included medical, nursing, physiotherapy, and clinical nutrition students from four public universities in Jordan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Egypt. Data were collected between February and October 2023 via an online survey that covered five main domains: benefits of AI in healthcare, negative impact on patient trust, negative impact on the future of healthcare professionals, inclusion of AI in HPE curricula, and challenges hindering integration of AI in HPE. Results Of 642 participants, 66.4% reported low AI knowledge levels. The UAE had the largest proportion of students with low knowledge (72.7%). The majority (54.4%) of participants had learned about AI outside their curriculum, mainly through social media (66%). Overall, 51.2% expressed positive attitudes toward AI, with Egypt showing the largest proportion of positive attitudes (59.1%). Although most participants viewed AI in healthcare positively (91%), significant variations were observed in other domains. The majority (77.6%) supported integrating AI in HPE, especially in Egypt (82.3%). A perceived negative impact of AI on patient trust was expressed by 43.5% of participants, particularly in Egypt (54.7%). Only 18.1% of participants were concerned about the impact of AI on future healthcare professionals, with the largest proportion from Egypt (33.0%). Some participants (34.4%) perceived AI integration as challenging, notably in the UAE (47.6%). Common barriers included lack of expert training (53%), awareness (50%), and interest in AI (41%). Conclusion This study clarified key considerations when integrating AI in HPE. Enhancing students’ awareness and fostering innovation in an AI-driven medical landscape are crucial for effectively incorporating AI in HPE curricula.

• Publisher: BioMed Central,BioMed Central Ltd,Springer Nature B.V,BMC
• Subject: Adult / Algorithms / Arabs / Artificial Intelligence / Artificial intelligence in clinical reasoning education / Attitude of Health Personnel / Attitudes / Barriers / Brain / Computers / Content Validity / Cross-Sectional Studies / Curricula / Curriculum / Data collection / Deep learning / Education / Educational Needs / Educational Policy / Educational Technology / Egypt / Female / Health aspects / Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice / Health Occupations - education / Health sciences / Health sciences education / Health Services / Humans / Influence of Technology / Instructional Leadership / Jordan / Knowledge / Leaders / Literacy / Machine learning / Male / Medical Education / Medical personnel / Medical students / Medicine / Methods / Nursing / Perceptions / Physical therapy / Professional ethics / Psychomotor Skills / Public Colleges / Questionnaires / R&D / Research & development / Sample size / Saudi Arabia / Student Surveys / Students, Health Occupations - psychology / Surveys and Questionnaires / Teachers / Technology application / Technology Integration / Theory of Medicine/Bioethics / Thinking Skills / Undergraduate education / United Arab Emirates / Young Adult