The data: Healthcare professionals (63%) are more optimistic than patients (48%) that AI could improve patient care, according to Philip’s Future Health Index 2025 report. 2,000 clinicians and 1,007 consumers in the US were surveyed between December 2024 and March 2025.

Zooming out: Clinicians are becoming more familiar with using AI at work, which is likely building their confidence in the tech.

• 66% of physicians surveyed by the AMA last November said they used AI in practice in 2024, significantly up from 38% in 2023.
• Doctors are most experienced using AI to transcribe patient visits for documentation purposes and to create care plans, per AMA’s survey.

However, patients usually aren’t informed about how AI is being used by doctors, which likely drives lower rates of optimism and trust.

• 79% of consumers say they’d be more comfortable with AI being used in healthcare if their doctors explained its use, per Philip’s survey.
• Reassurance that a clinician has oversight (44%) of AI and that tools have been tested to ensure safety and effectiveness (35%) would increase consumer trust in the tech for healthcare purposes.

Yes, and: The survey findings come as the American Medical Association just implemented a new policy aiming to increase transparency around how AI is used in clinical settings.

Doctors should be given clear explanations for outputs generated by healthcare AI tools, which they could also convey to their patients. And an independent third party, rather than the product’s developer, should determine the validity of the reasoning provided by the AI tool, per the AMA.