Artificial intelligence is a topic very much discussed these days. It’s all over the news and very much becoming part of our daily lives, whether we like it or not. Some find it incredibly exciting, others a terrifying prospect.
There is a lot of conversation surrounding which professions we think will stand the test of time or which ones will be replaced by automation or robots. Reading around the subject matter, there is a suggestion that by the year 2030, those working in marketing, graphic design and IT may be out of a job completely.
One of our patients here at Pro – Active owns a technology company; he uses chat GPT daily, even for diagnosing basic medical issues, and believes that one day GP’s will no longer be needed. My question is, does he think the same about Physiotherapists? What does the future hold for the physiotherapy profession? Will clinics like Pro-Active be a thing of the past in the not-too-distant future?
So, fearful of the answer I might get, I decided to ask Chat GPT itself whether AI will negate the need for physiotherapists in the years to come. I, along with my colleagues was very relieved to find that the answer was no, though, it did say that the profession will change because of it. Here’s some further thoughts on the matter.
‘Sometimes you just need hands on treatment’
According to the afore mentioned patient and Chat GPT, manual therapy, joint mobilisations, soft tissue work, injections and many parts of the physical assessment that we do as physios cannot be automated or reproduced by a robot. Here at Pro-Active we pride ourselves on our highly specialist hands on treatment skills which we have honed over years. As much as Chat GPT and other AI programmes can make a good stab at a diagnosis and some basic advice ‘sometimes you just need hands on treatment.’
A Chat-Bot can’t yet replace the personal touch.
Patients regularly come to Pro-Active feeling vulnerable, needing a lot of emotional support, encouragement and reassurance. Chatbots or triage software can help with the basics of diagnosis, referral or appointments, but you cannot easily recreate the personal touch and empathy that contributes hugely towards patient recovery. Our specialist physio’s have years of experience meaning that they know exactly what to say at the right time to help you get your confidence back and get you back on your feet as quickly as possible. So many of our patients say that they love coming to see us to provide that reassurance and to know they are doing the right thing to aid their recovery.
‘I’ve just got that gut feeling’
It has been said that Physiotherapy is both an art and a science.
According to Chat GPT…
‘AI can assist with analysing movement, recommending exercises or monitoring progress but it doesn’t have the full clinical reasoning or gut sense that experienced physios can bring to complex cases.’
All our clinicians here at Pro-Active are highly specialist with many years of experience. These years of experience lead to detailed clinical insight and ‘gut – feeling’ decision making for complex cases. We can naturally adapt to our patient’s needs and emotions and in response to the fine details that we gain from our thorough assessments. I think it is safe to say that no robot will ever be able to do that.
So, here at Pro-Active we are relieved to say that Physiotherapy still has a long future ahead, despite continually advancing technologies in the world!
In my next blog I will be exploring more about how AI can support our profession and our patients.
To be continued …
