Highlights:
- Can conversational agents, like Siri or Alexa, help address some of the racial health disparities seen between Black patients and their White peers? Potentially, so long as these technologies can earn the trust of their Black users, according to researchers from the University of Michigan. In order to create that patient trust, researchers will have to look into how to embed cultural competency into conversational agents (CAs) and achieve and communicate patient privacy safeguards.
- CAs can help bridge that care access gap by providing Black patients with a diagnostic tool within their own homes. These technologies help circumvent some of the physical barriers traditionally marginalized populations might face in healthcare access, and represent “a fast and reliable source of information,” the researchers said. CAs are also able to deliver health information in an understandable way, helping to account for differences in patient health literacy, Robert and colleagues stated.
- The second challenge relates to privacy and security concerns when using a CA. Many patients, Black patients included, have concerns about whether a CA would keep their health information anonymous and whether there is enough transparency surrounding CA utilization of patient health data. What’s more, limited digital health literacy can sow further distrust in health technologies. Again, this could open up areas for future research. Studies may look into what measures could help engender more patient trust in CAs and what physical and technical safeguards could deliver on patient privacy.
Comments