When to err is inhuman: An examination of the influence of artificial intelligence‐driven nursing care on patient safety

• Published in: Nursing inquiry 2024-01, Vol.31 (1), p.e12583-n/a
• Main Authors: Johnson, Elizabeth A., Dudding, Katherine M., Carrington, Jane M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Artificial; Artificial intelligence; Clinical decision making; Clinical nursing; Critical incidents; Critical junctures; critical posthumanism; deep learning; Health care; machine learning; Medical education; neural network; Nursing care; Patient safety; Patients; Professional training; Risk factors; Robotics; Safety
• ISSN: 1320-7881; 1440-1800; 1440-1800
• DOI: 10.1111/nin.12583

Artificial intelligence, as a nonhuman entity, is increasingly used to inform, direct, or supplant nursing care and clinical decision‐making. The boundaries between human‐ and nonhuman‐driven nursing care are blurred with the advent of sensors, wearables, camera devices, and humanoid robots at such an accelerated pace that the critical evaluation of its influence on patient safety has not been fully assessed. Since the pivotal release of To Err is Human, patient safety is being challenged by the dynamic healthcare environment like never before, with nursing at a critical juncture to steer the course of artificial intelligence integration in clinical decision‐making. This paper presents an overview of artificial intelligence and its application in healthcare and highlights the implications which affect nursing as a profession, including perspectives on nursing education and training recommendations. The legal and policy challenges which emerge when artificial intelligence influences the risk of clinical errors and safety issues are discussed.