Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to improve global health significantly. OpenAI’s ChatGPT, an AI chatbot, shows promise as a tool for nursing students to access information and practice their clinical skills. Cara Lunsford, RN, CPHON, the Vice President of Community at Nurse.com, spoke with Daily Nurse about using ChatGPT in nursing education, the role of educators in an AI world, and lessening the digital divide to make technology accessible for all.
The Prevalence of AI Integration in Healthcare
AI supports simulations to give students and clinicians more practice in safer environments before they begin working with human beings. ChatGPT can bring a broader range of knowledge together more quickly for potential further exploration of the best course of action. Additionally, as ChatGPT becomes more accurate and reliable, students can use it on their own time and in a private setting. They’ll likely feel more comfortable asking questions without fear of judgment from instructors or other students.
The Use of AI to Improve Global Health
With the challenges of staffing for nurses and physicians, AI can reduce costs for organizations and limit exposure to contagious diseases, especially in underserved areas of the world. AI can provide global health equity with immediate access to evidence-based best practices that will eventually be available through AI. As a result, hundreds of thousands of lives can be saved.
The Convenience of ChatGPT for Nursing Students
ChatGPT has the potential to be an excellent resource for basic information that nursing students can use as a starting point and then expand their knowledge. As ChatGPT becomes more reliable, it will allow nursing students to build clinical and interpersonal skills in a more controlled setting. ChatGPT could create scenarios or personas for students as they think through the best course of action in providing care for an AI-simulated patient or communicating with a simulated family member.
The Potential Misuses and Limitations of ChatGPT in Nursing Education
Using the current iteration of ChatGPT to diagnose or provide care plans would be dangerous. While ChatGPT has numerous advantages, it can create ethical issues in nursing education, such as plagiarism or cheating. Also, ChatGPT sometimes contains errors in answers to queries, and the software cannot currently provide citations for the source of the information in its responses. Student nurses will continue to need guidance from educators with years of experience who have well-developed judgment and hands-on knowledge of nursing protocols and pitfalls.
The Role of Educators in an AI World
While AI has its growing list of uses and benefits in the educational realm, it can’t fully replace in-person interaction between educators and their peers, educators and their students, or the human perspective. Right now, AI can serve as a tool to augment the work of educators, providing personalized and adaptive learning experiences and automating routine tasks. This gives educators time to focus on providing their students mentorship, support, and guidance. Additionally, nursing education is all about hands-on clinical experience. Student nurses stand to absorb more information and build more confidence through hands-on clinical experiences with nurse educators at the helm.
The Importance of Critical Thinking in an AI World
As general content becomes more available through AI, it will be imperative that nursing educators use their time to help students hone their critical thinking skills and instincts. Using AI for information gathering and suggesting solutions can be a time saver, but relying on AI for clinical decision-making could have tragic outcomes. Digital exams are still valuable, and requiring students to cite their answers’ sources can ensure they know how to find the information they need to succeed in nursing.
The Digital Divide and Advancement of Technology
While technology can help spread the word about differences in populations and individuals more quickly, it also raises questions about accessibility. Creators of technology, like ChatGPT, place themselves in unique positions to deliver information and services more quickly. However, it’s essential to recognize what must be done to make technological advancements accessible for all. Internet access is still not as widely available in certain geographic areas, creating limitations for populations living there. As a result, healthcare resources such as telehealth services become more limited and inaccessible for those populations. More work needs to be done to lessen this divide.