Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Professional Autonomy of Pathologists

Advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI) are paving the way to applications in pathology, with the hope of making significant contributions towards patient care. The prospect of implementation in clinical practice also raises organizational and ethical questions. Professional autonomy of pathologists is the freedom to make prognostic and diagnostic decisions independently that best meets the needs of patients. Researchers have highlighted some of the potential impacts of AI on professional autonomy. However, it is not clear how individual pathologists perceive its potential impact on their own practice.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the perspective of pathologists on the impact of Artificial Intelligence on their professional autonomy. The results of this study highlight the ethical concerns of pathologists related to decision making bias and their retroactive monitoring. Results also highlight the importance of curriculum and policy interventions to build upon technical knowledge and skills of pathologists and to have control over the process of validation and regulatory processes of AI tools and that these tools might make pathologists more objective and less mindful of resources.