Image: Emergency hospital during influenza epidemic (NCP 1603), National Museum of Health and Medicine. Description: Beds with patients in an emergency hospital in Camp Funston, Kansas, in the midst of the influenza epidemic. The flu struck while America was at war, and was transported across the Atlantic on troop ships. Date: circa 1918 Photo ID: NCP 1603 Source Collection: OHA 250: New Contributed Photographs Collection, Otis Historical Archives, National Museum of Health and Medicine. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Maurício Pinheiro
I dedicate this article to all health professionals who, in recent years, faced a third world war on the front line against an elusive enemy. They are admired by their patients and applauded by society in general, but many times they are not recognized in their own corporate environment, with a redundant hierarchy, inefficient management and under the orders of managers and coordinators who do not understand their functions and have no memory of the professional evolution of his subordinates. This makes their extremely altruistic lives hell.
I. Introduction
What will happen to the jobs that will be replaced by artificial intelligence? According to recent projections, by the end of this decade, over 30% of people in the US will lose their jobs to AI-powered algorithms and robots. A study by Oxford University points out that 47% of occupations in the United States are at risk of being replaced by AI in the near future. This will result in increased inequality, consolidation of economic castes, difficulties in social mobility, political insecurity, falling wages, identity crises, widespread depression and other very serious problems. The future looks terrifying.
Now imagine a country like Brazil, underdeveloped, with political institutions in constant conflict, clientelism, huge regional economic and educational differences, legal insecurity, aggravated political polarization, immediacy, a mentality based on “Gerson’s Law” and lack of a project of country in the long run, regardless of ideologies. If the future seems terrifying for the US, for Brazil, which is outside of the main technological advances in AI and robotics, it will be apocalyptic.
I don’t want to be seen as a doomsday prophet here and in this article, I won’t go into detail on this subject. The signs of a bleak future have been clear for some time (since deep learning became a reality in the past decade) and are available for all, published and visible. Palliative solutions, such as the Universal Basic Income (UBI) and the four-day work week (with a reduction of up to 20% of wages), are already being deeply discussed in the developed world, especially by the Silicon Valley crowd. They are also worried that the future crisis could result in the loss of markets and blame for chaos. They are afraid of having to pay the bill. However, palliative solutions will not get us out of the hole, they will only postpone the inevitable. Anyone who works in a hospital knows this very well!
In this article, we present a specific solution for the health area, which is not palliative. It’s a brilliant idea proposed by Kai-Fu Lee and detailed in his book “AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order”, published in 2018. Before we present his revolutionary proposal, let’s meet the author. Taiwan-born Kai-Fu Lee is a leader in the field of artificial intelligence, former vice president of Google, former director of Google China, former CEO and researcher at Microsoft and Apple, and today an investor in private equity funds. through Sinovation Ventures (valued at $2 billion in 2018). He is a source of inspiration for millions of Chinese who work or want to work in technology.
II. Epiphany
After being diagnosed with stage IV lymphoma, with a 70% chance of death within five years, Kai-Fu Lee re-evaluated his life, which was based on a mental algorithm optimized for allocating his time to have the highest productivity at work and the minimal but sufficient in their family relationships. Cancer made him realize that he was acting like a machine and not a human being with his co-workers and his family. What machines lack is the concept of love, love for loved ones, friends and compassion, which defines us as humans and differentiates us from an artificial intelligence that is programmed to simulate emotions. When facing the finitude of life and dealing with the fight against cancer in the day-to-day life of a hospital, he realized that what makes us human is exactly what can save us from the dark future described above. His bright idea starts with an example in healthcare that can be applied to many other sectors, involving a restructuring of jobs and a paradigm shift in education, so that there is a perfect symbiosis between AI and psychology. Before introducing this idea, let’s examine the influence of AI advances in healthcare.
III. Positive impacts of AI on Health
Artificial intelligence (AI) has had a significant impact on healthcare, revolutionizing the way healthcare professionals provide patient care and perform diagnoses. AI is capable of analyzing vast amounts of medical data, including medical images, clinical records and test results, to help physicians make informed decisions about patient care.
A concrete example of AI application in healthcare is the use of machine learning algorithms to help diagnose diseases. For example, AI can be used to analyze CT or MRI images to detect signs of cancer, spinal injuries or heart problems. These algorithms are trained on massive amounts of medical data, making them extremely accurate and reliable in their analyses.
Another application of AI in healthcare is the automation of administrative tasks, such as patient triage and appointment management. This allows healthcare professionals to spend more time caring for patients and performing other important tasks such as consultation and treatment. Furthermore, automating these tasks also helps to reduce waiting time for patients and increases the efficiency of the healthcare system.
Another important example is the use of AI in disease prevention and treatment. AI can be used to analyze patients’ health data, such as genetic data, medical history and lifestyle habits, to identify risk factors for disease and develop personalized prevention strategies. Furthermore, AI can also be used to identify more effective treatments for individual patients, helping to maximize their chances of recovery.
In short, AI is revolutionizing healthcare, making care more accurate, efficient and personalized for patients. In addition, AI is also helping to prevent disease and increase patients’ chances of recovery. In the future, AI is likely to play an even bigger role in healthcare.
IV. Negative impacts of AI on Health
Unfortunately, the impacts of artificial intelligence in healthcare are not only positive. Implementing AI could result in job losses for some professions, such as nurses and medical assistants. Automating routine tasks such as checking vital signs, administering medications and taking blood samples can be done more efficiently and accurately by machines than by humans. Furthermore, corporate management in hospitals could become even more rigorous and less humane, with an excessive emphasis on financial results and less concern for the well-being of health professionals and patients. This management can implement AI in order to reduce costs, which can lead to increased workload and psychological pressure on health professionals. So while AI can bring many benefits to healthcare, it is important to consider the potential negative impacts and ensure that changes are implemented in an ethical and balanced manner to avoid harming healthcare professionals and the quality of medical care.
V. The Bright Idea: Replacing Doctors, Nurses, and Nursing Assistants for “Compassionate Caregivers”
Kai-Fu Lee proposes an optimistic and innovative vision of the future of health. According to Lee, the combination of artificial intelligence and psychology is essential to deliver high-quality treatment to patients.
His concept of “compassionate caregivers” emphasizes the importance of training healthcare professionals to balance technology with human compassion. Artificial intelligence, as mentioned above, can be used to automate routine tasks, freeing up time for professionals to focus on more humane care, such as embracing and treating patients emotionally. Furthermore, AI can be used to collect and process medical data, facilitating clinical decision-making and improving diagnostic accuracy.
Lee’s proposed paradigm shift in physician education also includes a change in the way physicians are trained. Rather than just focusing on memorizing information, he believes it’s important for future doctors to have a more interactive background with AI and psychology. This will help ensure they know how to utilize technology effectively and apply human compassion in a balanced way in treating patients. In this way, medical education will be more complete and doctors, nurses and health assistants, all transformed into compassionate caregivers, will be better prepared for the future of health.
With this new model, Lee believes healthcare can be significantly improved, providing a brighter future for both patients and healthcare professionals. He emphasizes the importance of investing in training professionals prepared to deal with technology and human compassion in an integrated manner. By doing so, it will be possible to ensure high quality medical care for everyone.
VI. Obstacles
The proposal of Dr. Kai-Fu Lee’s idea of creating “compassionate caregivers” as a solution to the impact of artificial intelligence on the workforce is an ambitious idea that certainly deserves critical evaluation. In summary, the proposal suggests that rather than completely replacing human workers, artificial intelligence can be used to enhance their work, freeing them from repetitive tasks and allowing them to focus on tasks that require compassion and humanity.
However, to implement Lee’s proposal, there are a number of hurdles and challenges that need to be addressed. First, artificial intelligence technology needs to be developed to a point where it can actually help human workers rather than replace them. This means AI needs to be able to perform tasks that require compassion and humanity effectively and reliably.
In addition, it is important to consider the ethical and social impacts of the proposal. For example, there is a risk that AI could be used to monitor and control human workers, which could harm their privacy and freedom. In addition, it is important to consider whether AI will actually be able to provide the kind of compassionate care that is needed in some sectors, such as healthcare, and whether enough people will be willing to work with it.
Another major hurdle is cost. Implementing Lee’s proposal requires significant investment in technology and training, and many companies and institutions may not see this as a priority. Furthermore, there may be resistance from human workers to working alongside artificial intelligences, which can complicate implementation.
In short, Lee’s proposal to create “compassionate caregivers” is an interesting idea, but it requires a number of solutions to practical obstacles and challenges. It will be important to continue to carefully assess the ethical, social and economic impacts of AI on the workforce and find ways to minimize its negative effects, while harnessing its potential to improve our lives and society.
VII. Conclusion
The idea of Compassionate Caregivers is crucial for facing the health crisis that has affected society and will drastically worsen in the future with the increased use of AI technologies. This humanized and personalized approach to care can be applied in various sectors, such as hospitals, education and geriatrics. Furthermore, the restructuring of professions with the symbiosis of Artificial Intelligence and Psychology can be extended to other areas such as food safety, justice and environmental protection, making these professions more efficient and effective. However, in order to achieve these advances, it is necessary that society, especially in Brazil, mobilize as soon as possible to face this crisis. If we don’t act now, the impact will be dire and could affect future generations. Rather than wasting time discussing social agendas without practical meaning, as usual, we need to set aside ideologies and come together to work on effective and lasting solutions to this bleak future.
Suggested bibliography:
- Rose, N. (2007). The politics of life itself: Biomedicine, power, and subjectivity in the twenty-first century. Princeton University Press.
- Bostrom, N., & Cirkovic, M. M. (2008). Global catastrophic risks. Oxford University Press.
- Osborne, M., & Frey, C. B. (2013). Will robots steal our jobs? Forrester.
- Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The second machine age: Work, progress, and prosperity in a time of brilliant technologies. WW Norton & Company.
- Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2016). Human Work in the Robotic Future: Policy for the Age of Automation. Foreign Affairs.
- Lee, K. (2018). AI superpowers: China, Silicon Valley, and the new world order. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Note: Gerson’s Law is not an officially recognized law or regulation, but rather a popular expression used to describe situations where people act selfishly and prioritize their own interests above all else, without considering the consequences for other people or for others. the society as a whole. This expression is associated with the soccer player Gerson, from Flamengo, due to his performance in the 70s.