Key Takeaways
Patients are three times more likely to trust an AI agent built into their doctor’s secure portal than a public chatbot.
Eighty-nine percent say a clear “escalate to human” option is essential for trusting AI administrative support; 90% expect the same for AI medical support.
Patients’ top concerns about AI in healthcare are accuracy, followed by data privacy — worries cited by roughly 1 in 3 patients.
That readiness is driven by daily frustration with a system that is not working. The administrative burden alone is already eroding patient trust and care adherence across health systems. Forty-six percent of patients delay care because the digital process is too confusing, and 58% delay or skip necessary care because scheduling is too difficult. Nearly half (49%) hang up after 10 minutes on hold with a doctor’s office to seek care elsewhere or avoid it altogether. Two in three (66%) have run out of medication waiting for a prescription refill to be approved. And 90% say they wish their primary doctor was automatically notified after an emergency room visit — an expectation of basic coordination that current systems routinely fail to meet.
