Christopher J Peterson MD, MS
The generative artificial intelligence (AI) ChatGPT has attracted media attention for its ability to answer a wide variety of questions with a human-like writing style, including questions from the USMLE licensing examination. Some wonder if this indicates physicians’ eventual demise at AI’s hands. On the contrary, physicians contribute a unique skill set that technology cannot reproduce or replicate. ChatGPT also has critical limitations that will likely prevent it from replacing human operators or thinkers. Furthermore, the challenges from and worries over new technology are nothing new, with professionals and industries historically adapting to these changes.
Keywords: ChatGPT, artificial intelligence, machine learning, clinical practice, medical profession
Article citation: Peterson CJ. ChatGPT and Medicine: Fears, Fantasy, and the Future of Physicians. The Southwest Respiratory and Critical Care Chronicles 2023;11(48):18–30
From: Department of Internal Medicine, Virginia Tech School of Medicine, Roanoke, VA
Submitted: 6/18/2023
Accepted: 6/28/2023
Conflicts of interest: none
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