STAT+: One Mass. health system is turning to AI to ease shortage of primary care doctors. Some don’t like it

To mitigate a pressing shortage of primary care physicians, Mass General Brigham has introduced an AI application that engages patients, analyzes medical histories, and generates a potential list of diagnoses.

The tool, named “Care Connect,” was introduced on September 9 and caters to the 15,000 MGB patientswithout an assigned primary care doctor. A 24/7 chatbot interacts with users, and can schedule telehealth appointments with physicians in as little as thirty minutes. MGB is one of the initial healthcare systems in the nation to deploy such an app.

Despite this advancement, some primary care physicians at MGB view AI as a mere distraction, arguing that the real solution to the shortage lies in improving compensation and working environments to attract and retain more primary care doctors within Massachusetts’ largest health system.