HEALTHCARE · ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE · PATIENT EXPERIENCE Years ago, at a government hospital, I heard a surgeon say about a patient who kept asking him, "She must be a teacher." He was half-joking. She turned out to be one. It became my private joke: anyone who asks that many questions must be a teacher. I didn't know I'd think of that remark again. I think of it now because the patient who asks too many questions is no longer rare. She is in my family. Perhaps you have encountered her, too. A new kind of conversation My mother, my uncles, and my aunts are not medical professionals. When an unfamiliar symptom appears, they don't know the terminology, the likely causes, or the right questions to ask. But they have found ChatGPT and Gemini, and they talk to them like buddies. A symptom prompts a question, an answer prompts another, and nobody waits. Voice input matters most. They don't have to type a carefully worded query or know the medical term. They speak...
At times, the screen is the best medicine. Muscles and mind benefit. It nourishes my mind and helps me stretch my sinews as I check on the steps covered in the day. A screen anchors my biorhythm these days. I hibernate with it in winter months, snuggle up with it during warm stays at home, and let in family and friends to look over at my screen to see what is new. It is an oasis in my ecosystem and the brain where activity continues to pile up. I started, why? I do not remember. During COVID-19, I got on as if it was business. I found sleep impossible with the sun rising, so I looked for something to do that was not mentally demanding. Since then, whether walking or talking, I have thought of words to put down. Experiences primarily - humour and torment occasionally - have found their way in. I prefer the regimen of small doses, few words, new ideas, and bursts of creativity. A brazen thought – should I share my experienc...