AI in Mental Healthcare: Improving Mental Health Across the United States with AI
“Hey, how are you feeling today?” This is a normal question that a caring friend or loved one might ask you on a day-to-day basis. But imagine if Siri or Alexa did. Imagine if this technology, artificial intelligence, could understand your problems and help you when you feel down.
What Can AI Do for Mental Health?
With the rise of online mental health services due to the Covid-19 pandemic, AI in Mental Healthcare has been particularly helpful in increasing accessibility.
AI-based systems, unlike humans, are available at all times of the day and any location. Similarly, AI can reach people who cannot access traditional clinic-based services due to financial or geographic issues.
Systems such as chatbots and virtual assistants can listen to people’s problems and have been shown to improve people’s depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and/or confidence level issues.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), approximately one in five adults in the United States experience some type of mental health disorder in their lifetime. Mental healthcare is an enormous and costly field that may greatly benefit from artificial intelligence resources in the coming years.
AI algorithms can take in massive amounts of data about patients and detect signs of conditions like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. AI can also reduce bias and human error in diagnosis and act as a helpful tool for patients and doctors alike. AI in Mental Healthcare can increase access, provide 24/7 support, and personalize its care for users.
What AI Tools are Currently in Use?
One example of a current AI tool is Woebot, a computer program created by clinical research psychologist Dr. Alison Darcy that aims to replicate conversations a patient might have with their therapist. Woebot asks patients about their mood, listens to and learns about them, and offers cognitive behavior therapy tools during their chats.
In addition, a virtual therapist named Ellie was tested and released by the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies (ICT). It was designed to treat veterans struggling with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ellie can detect verbal and nonverbal cues such as hand gestures and facial expressions. Its creators argue that Ellie can improve diagnostic precision and advance the mental healthcare industry.
These types of tools may allow people to confide their intimate feelings to a greater degree than if they were speaking to a human. Patients might not feel judged by a robot in comparison to when they speak to a human, which might make conversations feel more private.
What is the Future of AI-Based Mental Healthcare?
AI in mental healthcare can be integrated into physical healthcare for a greater patient experience. AI might be able to alert doctors when patients are at risk of developing mental health issues or flag early signs of trouble.
The biggest concerns around these technologies are the risk of privacy and ineffective care. For example, the data collected about a patient might not be secure if given to third parties. The risk of ineffective care might also fail to create engagement and a bond that therapists create. For these reasons, there is some caution around human-AI interactions.
If AI could be used successfully alongside physical healthcare, with these risks in mind, AI can revolutionize the industry.
Sources:
https://www.verywellhealth.com/using-artificial-intelligence-for-mental-health-4144239
https://scopeblog.stanford.edu/2019/04/16/can-ai-improve-access-to-mental-health-care-possibly-stanford-psychologist-says/
https://healthitanalytics.com/features/what-role-could-artificial-intelligence-play-in-mental-healthcare
https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2020/08/19/five-ways-ai-can-help-revolutionize-mental-healthcare/?sh=431c8a3013ab
