Curious about artificial intelligence (AI)? Whether you’re excited or unsure, AI is already improving your health care in ways you may not realize.  Before, during and after your medical visit, AI is streamlining health care for both patients and providers.

How Is AI Used in Health Care? 

As technology improves, AI is being used more often in everyday health care tasks, even if you don’t notice it. Often working behind the scenes, AI currently appears in: 

• Clinical care – AI helps doctors figure out what’s wrong and plan treatments. Some tools can listen to your visit (with your permission) and write notes for the provider. This means they spend less time typing and more time engaging with you. 
• Administrative tasks – AI makes scheduling, billing and documentation easier and reduces paperwork. 
• Patient-facing services – AI can help you with your online health portal by answering your questions and assisting with billing. It can also provide personalized health reminders, such as medication reminders or appointment scheduling.  

How Does AI Improve the Patient Experience? 

AI helps providers work faster and make health care more patient centered. One type of AI, called generative AI, can read your medical chart and find important details quickly. Generative AI helps providers diagnose issues faster and even save lives. 

At Drexel, the electronic medical record (EMR) system uses AI as a digital assistant. It can summarize past notes, write drafts of visit records and highlight key patient information. AI can also write notes in simple language so patients understand them better. AI does not replace your providers – it just helps them communicate more clearly.  

Is My Health Information Safe? 

Yes. AI tools are built with strong safety rules to keep your health information private and secure. Drexel uses an EMR system called Epic. Epic’s AI uses OpenAI’s technology inside a secure space made for health care. Your data never goes to OpenAI, and it is not used to train AI models. Your information stays protected. 

How Do We Make Sure AI Is Fair and Accurate? 

To make sure AI is fair and accurate, it is built using many kinds of data and follows strict rules. Providers always check AI’s suggestions, make changes and use their own knowledge before making decisions. This helps keep human judgment at the center of care.  

AI tools in health care are designed to keep patients safe and protect their personal information. Epic makes these tools using “Thoughtful AI” principles. This means the tools are safe, fair and private. Experts review every AI feature before it is used, so it helps providers without replacing their judgment. You can trust that AI is used responsibly, with safety, fairness and privacy in mind. 

Will I Ever Interact Directly With AI for My Care? 

Soon, yes! Epic is working on new AI tools that will make your MyChart portal easier to use. These tools will give you access to your health information in a simple way. In the future, you will receive reminders about appointments, see test results, check medications and finish pre-visit tasks – all with the help of AI. 

Does AI Follow Privacy Laws? 

Yes. Epic’s AI tools follow U.S. HIPAA rules and European privacy laws like General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). These tools are designed with privacy protections to keep your information secure. AI is only used in places where there are clear rules for sharing data, so you can rest assured that your information is protected.