Recently a co-worker and I were talking about ChatGPT – a new online bot that can respond to questions and comments from users in a conversational and “human-like” manner. We spoke about the pros and cons of this new technology, the effects it could have in education, as well as ways it could be used by individuals. After our conversation, I wanted to try chatting with the bot myself, and learn a little more about how it can be used by others.
ChatGPT was first launched in November 2022 and is currently available through a free research preview. The program does require a user to create a username and password to log in, but that hasn’t stopped many individuals – within three days of its launch, over one million people had signed up to use the site. Users can ask ChatGPT just about anything that comes to their mind, from meal planning help, ideas for a party, or a synopsis of a book or movie (and it even tries to avoid spoilers!). The chatbot rejects inappropriate requests and will challenge false assumptions – for example, if asked to talk more about Christopher Columbus’ arrival in America in 2015, it will first gently correct the user then treat the question as hypothetical.
As I was chatting, I wondered how artificial intelligence could be used as a support in other productive ways. So, of course, I asked ChatGPT itself:
As artificial intelligence technologies continue to improve, individuals may see it being used more in healthcare and medicine. One way it is used today is through wearable health devices (WHDs). Many of these devices look like watches or bands and are able to track the daily health stats of the person wearing the device. This allows individuals to take charge of their own health and monitor their activity. Some WHDs are able to be remotely monitored by physicians, creating more communication between patients and healthcare professionals.
Even ChatGPT itself could play a role in community health. It can provide information on public health issues and answer questions about health promotion and disease prevention, including the importance of vaccinations, regular screenings, and ways to reduce risk factors. It can also provide information about health programs and services in the community, listing eligibility criteria for certain services and whether programs can be covered through health insurance. The are some limitations to what ChatGPT can do, however. It may not always be completely accurate due to the limitations of its data. Chatbots also do not have the same level of engagement with individuals as a human health educator would provide.
I know I am amazed by the advancements of technology in the last few years. There is so much support that artificial intelligence can provide to help keep us healthy, however there are still some issues for programmers to solve. I am excited to see what the future will bring to better health and wellness!
Written by: Jessica Lowe, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State University Extension, Pickaway County, lowe.495@osu.edu
Review by: Dan Remley PhD, MSPH, Field Specialist, Food, Nutrition, and Wellness, Ohio State University Extension, remley.4@osu.edu
References:
Biswas, S. (2023). Role of chat gpt in public health. Annals of Biomedical Engineering. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10439-023-03172-7#citeas
Bohr, A. & Memarzadeh, K. (2020). The rise of artificial intelligence in healthcare applications. National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7325854/
Broom, D. (2022). Explained: what is chatGPT? World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2022/12/chatgpt-ai-bot-intelligent-conversation/
ChatGPT. (n.d.). https://chat.openai.com/chat.
Tyson, A. et al. (2023). 60% of American would be uncomfortable with provider relying on AI in their own health care. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2023/02/22/60-of-americans-would-be-uncomfortable-with-provider-relying-on-ai-in-their-own-health-care/
Live Healthy Live Well 
this article is inter3esting to me because I’m in a leadership course and there is such a difference in leaders using all means of communication to reach people as opposed to face to face talking. I’m going to present this information to my cohort tomorrow, we’ll see how that discussion goes. most of us are old school approach.
That is awesome! Hopefully this generates some good conversation in your cohort!