NEET-PG Counselling and the Impact of AI on Medical Fields
As counseling approaches, students typically aim for the best ranks based on historical trends. However, things have changed significantly, and the impact of these changes on the medical field will be felt very soon.
Trend 1 (GPT):
To understand AI’s growing capabilities to grasp the impact, let’s first examine the areas in which AI is improving and why AI is primarily limited by two factors:
- The amount of data available for AI to learn from.
- The processing power available for AI to learn.
Almost all medical literature is already in digital format, including textbooks and journals. With advancements in large language models (LLMs), GPT-4, the latest model, has been trained on this data. GPT-4 can access everything published in medical journals or textbooks and can reason (with proper prompt engineering). By combining knowledge with reasoning, AI can replace fields that rely heavily on these specific skills, make decisions based on data provided within 10-15 minutes, and do not involve manual skills (dexterity, etc.).
Some fields that may be affected include consultants (doctors without physical skills), engineers working on a project basis, lawyers dealing with general law application, accountants giving tax advice, and educators who focus on facts and personalizing learning.
Trend 2 (Image Recognition):
Disruption in fields involving image analysis that involve image recognition are also ripe for disruption. Currently, the main limitations are lack of data and limited processing power on devices. However, it is only a matter of time before these machines utilize cloud computing for more significant processing capabilities, making them equal or superior to humans in detecting irregularities.
Trend 3 (Profitability First):
High economic value solutions companies are focusing on areas that can be disrupted, replacing high-paying jobs, and generating financial windfalls. This is why robots replacing restaurant workers don’t receive the same attention.
Trend 4 (Government Initiatives for Healthcare Accessibility): Indian Context
The Indian government is striving to increase the doctor-to-population ratio in line with developed countries. The government is promoting the prescription of allopathic medicines by ayurvedic doctors and nurses at the village level as primary healthcare providers.
Imagine an app based on GPT-4 to help diagnose issues and prescribe routine medicines. The impact on medical practice could be significant, as educated individuals in cities may also start using these apps for self-diagnosis.
Impact:
Identifying the affected impacted fields include medicine, dermatology, pediatrics, and other OPD-based fields that could be replaced with a combination of GPT-4, a nurse, and a 6-month course.
Fields that may be impacted in the near future include those relying on machines for patient observation/diagnosis. This trend may take 7-12 years to materialize, with radiodiagnosis as an example. Government regulations, particularly in western countries, could be the most significant barrier.
Fields safe from AI, for now, are those that require physical work, planning, dexterity, and real-time ambiguity resolution. These fields include surgery and all fields involving surgeries, such as obstetrics and gynecology, ophthalmology, and orthopedics.
Futureproofing your MD
To prepare for the future, avoid fields that are currently impacted or will be impacted soon if you plan to practice in tier 2+ cities or villages. If your focus is medical research or academics, choose a field that interests you, as AI will not impact fields centered on discoveries and innovation. Instead, AI will aid these fields in moving faster than ever.
Final Note
We discovered this fact when integrating GPT-3 into our product. While GPT-3 would score in the top 5,000 ranks for NEET 2023, GPT-4 would score in the top 50 ranks. GPT-4 correctly answered more than 99% of easy questions and 90% of moderate questions. The questions where it failed were mostly word problems.
In conclusion
The rapid advancements in AI and its integration into various fields are significantly impacting the medical profession. To future-proof your medical career, it is essential to consider these trends and adapt accordingly. Embrace the potential of AI to aid in medical research and innovation, and carefully select your specialization to stay relevant in the ever-changing landscape of healthcare.