Community Health Nurses' Perceptions of Emerging Artificial Intelligence and its Impact on Nursing Practice: An...

Area of Science:

• Nursing Informatics
• Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
• Community Health Nursing

Background:

• Artificial intelligence (AI) adoption is growing in healthcare, primarily in acute care settings.
• Community health nursing (CHN) practice, vital for client well-being, remains under-researched regarding AI.
• A knowledge gap exists concerning CHNs' understanding and use of AI.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate community health nurses' knowledge and perceptions of AI.
• To identify factors influencing the adoption and utility of AI in community health settings.
• To inform the development of AI strategies for future CHN practice.

Main Methods:

• An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was employed.
• A cross-sectional survey was administered to 228 CHNs.
• Eight focus groups with 27 participants were conducted to elaborate on survey findings.

Main Results:

• CHNs expressed significant concerns regarding AI accuracy (77.7%) and the dismissal of correct AI recommendations (73.8%).
• Participants emphasized their responsibility in decision-making, focusing on avoiding blind reliance on AI.
• While perceiving AI as useful (68.8%-88%), CHNs highlighted clinical relevance, user-friendliness, and time efficiency as key determinants of utility.

Conclusions:

• Dedicated AI education is essential for CHNs to understand AI recommendation generation and appropriate reliance.
• Development of clear policies and guidelines is necessary to govern AI use in CHN practice.
• Successful AI integration hinges on applications that enhance, not impede, CHNs' workflow efficiency.