In practice today, artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare is primarily a tool for collecting healthcare data through wearable health monitoring devices such as smartwatches. It’s also used for processing that data and performing tasks such as staff scheduling and workflow management, according to Charlotte Böhning, associate design strategist at Perkins Eastman (San Francisco).
However, AI has the potential for much more, Böhning told attendees at the 2025 Healthcare Conference + Expo, held Oct. 24-28 in Kansas City, Mo. During the panel discussion “More Human Healthcare: AI and the Patient Experience,” Böhning and other experts explained how AI provides a technology solution for built healthcare environments that can help to improve the patient experience.
For example, “ambient intelligence” is a type of AI that embeds environments with devices that are context-aware, adaptive, and responsive to human presence, enhancing user interactions seamlessly. These sensors, when embedded in smart exam rooms, can monitor a patient’s vital signs, such as heart rate and blood pressure, and deliver real-time insights to clinicians. This approach provides “an opportunity for healthcare designers to rethink space,” said panelist Pamela Kurz, managing principal and healthcare lead in Perkins Eastman’s San Francisco office.
“Areas once used primarily for routine diagnostics can now become coordination and interpretation hubs supporting higher acuity care, interdisciplinary teamwork, and collaborative patient interactions,” she added.
Using AI to conduct routine but often time-consuming tasks such as collecting and processing health data also means that doctors and nurses can spend more time delivering personable, empathetic healthcare, Kurz noted.
“Assisted by AI, we can design a more human experience for patients and care staff that isn’t intrusive, supports operational flow, and is responsive to a unique human and their needs,” Kurz said.
That’s important as patients put more emphasis on empathetic interactions with their caregivers, Böhning added. For example, in a patient satisfaction survey conducted by the Cleveland Clinic, 71 percent of respondents said that “empathy is as important as clinical quality.”
“We need systems that safely maximize time for empathy to thrive,” she said, noting that technology solutions for routine tasks can allow clinicians to talk with patients to gain a better understanding of their medical needs. This interaction can have a positive cascading effect on the patient experience, leading to better overall health outcomes.
Böhning added that clinicians are experiencing burnout as they manage rising patient complexities, financial headwinds, and mounting administrative loads.
“This is where well-implemented AI comes in, not to replace clinicians but to relieve some of the burden and craft supportive care environments” by taking on tasks that are better suited for computers, such as monitoring vital signs, she said. “As one radiologist explained: ‘If I have AI to help, I can spend time connecting with my patients.”
Furthermore, the speakers noted that AI can begin to improve the patient experience even before arrival at the hospital. For example, Kurz said, the technology can collect health data through wearable devices and send that information to a doctor. It can also deliver clear communication to prepare patients for a doctor’s appointment, such as where to park.
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