Hyderabad: Doctors spend about 40-50% of their working hours on documentation, chart reviews and other administrative tasks, while healthcare data are growing by more than 35% annually, making it increasingly difficult for physicians to process information manually. Against this backdrop, artificial intelligence (AI) is emerging as an important tool in healthcare, but it cannot become a “robot doctor” and replace physicians, said Dr M Raja Rao, principal of Osmania Medical College and additional director of medical education, while addressing a physicians’ conference.Presenting a paper titled “The Future Physician”, Raja Rao said healthcare today generates nearly 30% of the world’s digital data, including electronic health records, medical imaging, laboratory reports, genomic information and data from wearable devices. A single hospitalised patient can generate thousands of clinical data points from investigations, medications, monitoring and clinical notes.The remarks were made during the 10th annual conference of the Association of Physicians of India (API) Telangana chapter, and the sixth South Mid Zone conference, held at the Engineering Staff College of India (ESCI), Gachibowli. Hosted by the Hyderabad chapter of the API, the conference is themed ‘Engaging Minds: Translating Expertise to Evidence.The presentation noted that physicians may spend up to two hours on electronic records for every hour of patient care, contributing to burnout, lower job satisfaction and medical errors. AI-powered documentation systems and automated note generation could substantially reduce this burden, enabling doctors to devote more time to bedside care and patient interaction.Raja Rao said healthcare systems worldwide were simultaneously grappling with ageing populations, a rising prevalence of chronic diseases and shortages of healthcare professionals. Internal medicine practitioners are increasingly expected to manage patients with multiple complex illnesses while coping with an ever-growing volume of medical information.According to the presentation, more than 70% of healthcare organisations worldwide are already testing or implementing AI solutions, with investments focused on diagnostics, predictive analytics, documentation and workflow optimisation. AI is increasingly being viewed as a strategic necessity rather than an optional technology.The presentation highlighted that nearly 5% of adults experience a diagnostic error every due to incomplete information, cognitive bias, fragmented records, communication gaps and time constraints. AI systems can analyse vast amounts of data beyond human cognitive capacity, helping physicians identify overlooked findings, suggest alternative diagnoses and predict clinical deterioration.AI is already being used in image interpretation, ECG analysis, clinical note summarisation, differential diagnosis generation and risk prediction. Technologies such as machine learning, deep learning and large language models are increasingly being incorporated into internal medicine practice. However, Raja Rao stressed that empathy, ethical decision-making, bedside assessment and professional accountability would remain uniquely human responsibilities. “The future physician will be the clinician who can combine human judgment with machine intelligence while protecting the patient from both human and machine error,” he said.
