Archive · 26 Aug 2026
AI in Healthcare May Weaken Trust in Doctors and Therapists
AI can help doctors by writing down notes and organising information.
But many people now use it to guess what illness they have or what treatment they need.
This can make them focus on one answer before speaking fully with a doctor or therapist.
AI usually responds to the questions people ask, so it may not challenge their assumptions.
That can lead to worry, wrong ideas or delayed treatment.
Doctors and therapists also need to understand a person’s feelings, history, values and way of life.
The author believes technology should support care, not replace human trust and compassion.
Patients and healthcare professionals both have a role in building that trust.
AI can help healthcare professionals transcribe notes and organise medical information.
Patients increasingly use AI and online sources to interpret reports, suggest diagnoses and check medicine side effects.
Pre-determined diagnoses and treatment demands can make clinicians’ relationships with patients feel transactional and weaken trust.
The article warns that AI-driven self-diagnosis may contribute to confirmation bias, delayed treatment, misdiagnosis and cyberchondria.
The author argues that patients and clinicians must both help preserve empathy, openness and human connection in care.
- Who
- Patients, doctors, therapists and other healthcare professionals are involved.
- What
- The article examines whether growing reliance on AI for medical and mental-health information is weakening trust and human relationships in care.
- When
- The issue is discussed in the present period of increasing AI use in healthcare.
- Where
- In general medical, psychiatric, therapy, dermatology and nutrition settings, including doctors’ clinics and therapists’ offices.
- Why
- People may rely on AI for diagnoses and treatment plans, which can encourage confirmation bias, self-diagnosis, misdiagnosis and less personal clinical interactions.
AI as a Helpful Healthcare Tool
Human Relationships as Essential to Care
Role in diagnosis and treatment
AI as a Helpful Healthcare Tool
AI can help organise information and provide patients with possible explanations, reports and medicine-related information.
Human Relationships as Essential to Care
Patients may become anchored to AI-generated or online diagnoses and demand a pre-selected treatment before a professional can understand their situation.
Nature of healthcare interactions
AI as a Helpful Healthcare Tool
Using technology may help make healthcare information more accessible and support clinical work.
Human Relationships as Essential to Care
Treating appointments as requests for prescriptions or fixed plans can make care transactional and reduce empathy, exploration, warmth and human connection.
Trust and safety
AI as a Helpful Healthcare Tool
AI is described as a tool that is likely to remain part of healthcare.
Human Relationships as Essential to Care
Unchallenged prompts and AI’s tendency to reinforce users’ views may contribute to confirmation bias, cyberchondria, delayed treatment and misdiagnosis.
- AI benefits
- AI can transcribe notes and organise medical information.
- Patient behavior
- Some patients arrive with diagnoses or treatment plans based on online information and AI.
- Clinical concern
- Patients may become anchored to a particular diagnosis before speaking with a professional.
- Risks identified
- The article links excessive reliance on AI with delayed treatment, self-diagnosis and misdiagnosis.
- Confirmation bias
- AI responds directly to users’ prompts, which may reinforce assumptions instead of challenging them.
- Cyberchondria
- The author describes increased health anxiety caused by extended online searches for medical information and medicines.
- Trust
- The author says trust depends on empathy, openness, compassion and responsibility from both patients and clinicians.