Don’t walk. Run. Australia urged to accelerate AI in healthcare

Australia has reached a critical point in determining how artificial intelligence (AI) will shape the future of healthcare. 

The question is no longer whether AI will transform healthcare, but whether Australia is ready to guide that transformation in a way that delivers the greatest benefits to patients and clinicians. 

For clinicians and particularly GPs working under increasing pressures, AI has enormous potential to improve the quality, accessibility and efficiency of healthcare. Yet the pace of technological development is now outstripping the systems we have traditionally relied upon to ensure safety, quality and effectiveness. 

Healthcare is well known for its inertia to change and so we must find new agile ways to meet these historic challenges. Our mantra must be: Don't walk. Run.

It means moving quickly and deliberately to put in place the governance, workforce capability, consumer engagement and research needed to support the safe, effective and widespread adoption of AI across the health system. 

A national roadmap for AI in health care

These issues are at the heart of the newly released National Policy Roadmap for AI in Healthcare, developed by the Australian Alliance for AI in Healthcare (AAAiH) with support from the Australian Institute of Health Innovation (AIHI) at Macquarie University, the Digital Health Cooperative Research Centre, CSIRO’s eHealth Research Centre and RMIT University. Importantly it incorporates input from consumers, more than 96 organisations and 20 peak bodies and government agencies. 

The Roadmap reflects the rapid emergence of generative AI and the increasing use of AI across healthcare. It argues that healthcare systems must become much better at responding to rapid technological change. 

For clinicians, the implications are significant. AI will fundamentally change clinical jobs and workflows. Inadvertently AI may also introduce new stressors contributing to burnout. 

This is particularly relevant in primary care. GPs are often among the first clinicians to encounter new patient expectations and emerging technologies. As AI tools become more integrated into documentation, decision support, patient communication and care coordination, clinicians need clear guidance on what works, what is safe and what delivers genuine value. 

Strong leadership, oversight and governance will be crucial

There are also growing concerns that over-reliance on AI, known as automation bias, will sometimes see clinicians agree with unsafe AI recommendations. There is a risk that we will see overreliance on AI lead to deskilling in essential clinical reasoning competencies in diagnosis and management. While the risk extends to practicing clinicians, it may be even more significant for students and trainees who have not yet fully developed these core competencies. 

The Roadmap therefore proposes making AI competency a standard part of clinical education across healthcare professions. It also recommends a national Chief AI Officer training program to create AI leaders across hospitals and health services who can help 

The Roadmap calls for stronger national leadership and collaboration between governments, healthcare providers, researchers, industry and consumers. It also highlights the growing importance of building Australian capability in healthcare AI, rather than relying solely on technologies and policy approaches developed overseas.

To support that future, we should prioritise national best-practice guidance for the clinical implementation of AI and provide procurement guidance at both state and federal levels so health services can identify proven technologies for implementation. Clinicians need confidence that the tools being introduced into practice are supported by evidence, appropriate governance and clear standards. 

The opportunity before us is substantial. The challenge as a nation, is whether we can organise ourselves quickly enough to realise it. 

AI will continue to advance regardless of whether healthcare is ready. Our responsibility is to ensure that its adoption is guided by clear evidence, strong governance and collaboration across the sector. If we succeed, AI can deliver meaningful benefits for patients, clinicians and the broader health system. 

Professor Enrico Coiera is the Director for the Centre for Health Informatics, Australian Institute of Health Innovation, Macquarie University and Founder and Lead of the Australian Alliance for AI in Healthcare.