AI Chatbots Find Their Perfect Niche Within Medical Sciences

Chatbots powered by artificial intelligence are seen across all industries and spectrums to date. In terms of emerging technologies, AI chatbots might be one of the most contentious out there. Researches, along with the general public, worry about the consequences of letting artificial intelligence communicate with human beings. There’s a serious worry that this particular technology could destroy the customer service industry as we know it. Other applications for chatbots also receive a lot of scrutiny – such as various use-cases within psychology or therapy work. 

There are, undeniably, countless cases of AI chatbots going rogue and causing more harm than good. People also worry about the simple uses of AI, like the ability to ask chatbots to generate images, videos, or written content. It makes everyone wonder if this technology is truly worth it – though recent developments within the medical sciences sector suggest that, perhaps, this technology has finally found its niche. 

Rather than allowing advanced AI to run amok in general society, use cases in the medical sciences field have shown how beneficial this technology can truly be. Many view this as one of the most exciting examples of how to use artificial intelligence properly, without it damaging human life or being a considerable waste of money. But how is this industry using AI chatbots?

Pre-Screening For Patients

Healthcare providers now enlist AI chatbots on their websites as a pre-screening solution for patients to increase triage efficiency. It’s actually a rather simple concept that works like this: 

• Patients visit the healthcare provider’s website and open the chatbot to book an appointment.
• The chatbot then asks several questions relating to the patient’s symptoms. 
• Based on the answers, the chatbot can determine how urgent the situation is. For instance, the user may only describe the symptoms of seasonal allergies, in which case an emergency appointment isn’t necessary. However, another patient could explain symptoms that trigger urgent care warning signs, like shortness of breath, and so the chatbot knows to schedule an emergency appointment ASAP. 

In some of the more advanced cases, AI chatbots could trigger things like prescription services or renewals. This only works if the patient is already registered with the specific healthcare provider and passes the necessary identity checks. The chatbot can use their information to find their health records and then initiate a repeat prescription purchase without the user needing to visit or call a doctor. 

When used correctly, chatbots help speed up the pre-screening process and reduce unnecessary administration for healthcare provider employees. It should mean that waiting times go down and more people have access to urgent care when necessary. 

Lab Equipment & Product Matching

Many organizations within the medical sciences field require lab equipment to carry out their jobs. In the past, these companies struggled with procurement, as most lab equipment websites did not provide the information they were looking for. You had an entire sub-industry that revolved around online catalogs, product listings, etc. It was difficult for a business to identify the right products for their lab’s needs, largely because they needed to ask several questions before making a big purchase. 

The only solution was to phone the supplier and talk for a long time, but this created another issue: customer service delays. Suppliers only had a finite number of people manning their phones, so it was never guaranteed that lab equipment purchasers could access the help they needed. 

This is beginning to change with the emergence of lab equipment chatbot solutions. It’s a tool that’s designed specifically for lab equipment manufacturers and distributors, offering a simple way for buyers to find the answers they need. Buyers can use this particular AI chatbot to ask application-specific questions that won’t be answered in a product listing/catalog. It allows the buyer to get extremely detailed about what they need certain equipment for, and the chatbot offers expert answers and guidance. 

The result is that companies with labs waste less money on equipment that doesn’t work for them, and can actually purchase the things they need without it being a time-consuming process. Of course, these chatbots are trained to know everything about lab equipment – specifically the use-cases for all of the manufacturers/suppliers’ equipment. For purchasers, it’s like having a sales expert in the room with them. 

Supporting Clinical Decisions

When a healthcare provider interacts with a patient and learns about their symptoms, the next steps usually follow this process: 

• Gather the patient’s medical information. 
• Consider what the underlying problem may be based on the symptoms. 
• Cross-reference any previous medical issues and look at the patient’s current medication before providing solutions. 
• Offer treatments based on the patient’s situation. 

All of this has to be done manually by the healthcare provider, and it usually happens during the appointment. They have to carry out a lot of quick research, consult with studies and check the individual’s medical records all at once. It can be too much to handle, which is why AI chatbots have found a home in this scenario. 

By training AI chatbots to understand the medical industry and the processes involved in diagnosing patients and administering treatment, they can handle all steps in this process instantly. A doctor or medical professional must simply input the patient’s information, complete with their symptoms, and the chatbot can access their records, make comparisons, and pull from existing studies/research to find the ideal treatment. 

For example, someone could complain of symptoms that suggest they need treatment for IBS. However, the chatbot gathers information from the patient’s records that tells them they’re taking medication that can interact with the traditional IBS medication. As such, the healthcare professional can now prescribe something else to prevent a bad reaction. There’s so much potential here – it’s like doctors have their own personal assistants at all times. 

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