Machines and empathy in medicine

The human bond between patient and clinician is fundamental. But the patient–doctor relationship is affected by the limited time allotted for a clinic visit or bedside rounds and the way clinicians need to update electronic records during a consultation (figure A). Such factors can result in the perception that clinicians lack compassion and empathy. Artificial intelligence (AI) could help restore the essential humaneness in medicine, primarily by providing the gift of time—the premise of my 2019 book Deep Medicine.