L’Intelligenza Artificiale (AI) e le professioni sanitarie

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is defined as the ability of a machine to “reason, learn, and solve problems” by emulating human minds. Machine Learning (ML) is a subset of artificial intelligence that deals with creating systems that learn or improve performance based on the data they use. AI is revolutionizing all areas of human activities and also the healthcare world in all its areas: organization, work, and care. The main aspects and different issues will be analyzed below, including for the different health professions with the specific applications already available today in an ever-evolving field. The Italian state currently recognizes 30 health professions, for the practice of which registration in the respective professional orders is mandatory. All health professions will be impacted by the introduction of AI in health care because the availability of data in health care has grown enormously as have the sources from which they come. The field in which the most progress has been made in terms of the use of artificial intelligence, as an aid in medicine, is currently the technical-diagnostic field and, in today's field of interest, for the professions of Nursing, Biomedical Laboratory Health Technician (BHLT), Physiotherapist, Medical Radiology Health Technician (TSRM), Technical, Rehabilitation and Prevention Health Professions Technician (PSTRP) and partly the clinical one. In the latter area there are now several scientific evidences of their reliability, particularly in the oncology, respiratory and cardiology areas. After instructing a machine in interpreting images provided through X-rays, ultrasounds, CT scans, MRIs, electrocardiograms, and examinations from the analysis of biological tissue samples (liquid-laboratory- and histological-pathological anatomy-), today it is also possible to identify, with a good degree of reliability, cancer, cardiovascular, dermatological, and respiratory diseases. Another area in which much work is being done is related to prediction systems, which can identify possible diseases even before they occur. No less interesting is the use of artificial intelligence in the screening of numerous existing molecules to identify the most promising ones to be subjected to clinical trials, thus reducing the time to transfer research results to clinical practice (translational medicine). Finally, the application of artificial intelligence in medical robotics is initiating a new phase of development that could enable more precise diagnostic examinations and remote surgical interventions, as well as provide personalized support in rehabilitation devices and advanced prosthetics. Advantages and risks of the application in medicine of artificial intelligence and its evolution: generative intelligence, were highlighted in this paper. One of the most important risks related to the use of artificial intelligence in medicine concerns the fact that the systems used have not been sufficiently tested and supported by sound scientific evidence. As robust clinical trials should be conducted as possible that methodologically involve multiple centers, hospitals, and institutes (multicenter) universities and nonuniversity, and that evaluate the effects in a random (randomized) manner on an adequate statistically representative sample of the population being examined, starting from the beginning of the study and ending at its conclusion (prospective). In conclusion, artificial intelligence holds tremendous potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry, improving care, efficiency, and even the patient experience in healthcare. It is critical, however, to use it responsibly, with an appropriate policy and oversight framework that can address risks and challenges, including legal ones. Finally, some applications of AI already being used in various health professions are described.