AI will further erode physician autonomy, says former surgeon

Frances Mei Hardin, a former ENT surgeon and consultant, argues that artificial intelligence will not increase doctors' independence but will further reduce it.

She points out that the same top-down directives that have long dictated how physicians train and work are now being applied to AI tools, with the message to simply accept them rather than question their design.

Hardin notes that clinicians have little say in how these systems are built or rolled out, likening the situation to past experiences where trainees had no leverage over residency placement.

The opinion calls for a reassessment of how AI is introduced in medicine, urging that physicians regain a meaningful role in shaping the technology rather than being passive users.