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Education Keynote

Will AI Be the Death of Clinical Reasoning?

Laura R. Hopson, MD, MEd
Josiah Macy Jr. Distinguished Educator Professor | Associate Chair of Education
University of Michigan

Artificial intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the clinical environment. Medical education is not immune to its impact. Even now, educators wrestle with questions about the use of AI in the classroom and as a documentation tool in the clinical learning environment. The rapid emergence of AI-powered decision-making tools raises critical questions for the training of the next generation of emergency physicians: How do we ensure the development of foundational clinical reasoning skills as AI becomes increasingly embedded in clinical workflows? 

While AI can certainly streamline laborious tasks, it also introduces risks such as automation bias and "deskilling," where clinicians and trainees lose essential cognitive skills through over-reliance on technology. The SAEM26 Education Keynote, delivered by Laura R. Hopson, MD, MEd, Associate Chair of Education at the University of Michigan, will review the current state of understanding about cognitive interface between humans and AI and its variable impact on clinical reasoning education and outcomes. We will consider strategies to ensure that medical trainees develop and maintain crucial skills—including information gathering, hypothesis generation, and adaptive expertise—despite the increasing automation of routine processes.

Ultimately, while AI can enhance certain outcomes, it does not replace the need for critical thinking, nor does it consistently improve performance for all users. Understanding this human-technology interface is essential for educators to support the development of our next generation of emergency physicians.

Learning Objectives

  1. Understand the parallels between the internal processes of generative AI and human clinical reasoning.
  2. Describe the potential benefits and risks of integrating AI documentation and decision-making tools into emergency medicine education.
  3. Identify strategies educators can use to preserve and foster foundational cognitive skills in an AI-enabled clinical environment.

 

Laura R. Hopson, MD, MEd

Associate Chair of Education

University of Michigan

Laura R. Hopson, MD, MEd, is Professor and Associate Chair of Education in the Department of Emergency Medicine of the University of Michigan Medical School. She graduated from Yale University with a BS in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry and obtained her MD from Duke University. She completed residency training at the University of Michigan, and a master’s in education through Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Hopson has been extensively involved in medical education at the undergraduate and graduate level throughout her career including nine years as residency program director. She co-directs the University of Michigan’s GME Innovations program which is an institutional initiative to promote innovations in education and demonstrates their effectiveness through high-level learner and patient centered outcomes. Dr. Hopson has a long-standing interest in the transition between UME and GME and her scholarly work focuses on the residency selection process and optimizing learning outcomes including the implementation of competency based medical education.