Imagine stepping into a doctor’s office, only to find a robot ready to assist with your diagnosis. Sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie, right? Turns out, artificial intelligence (A.I.) is already making waves in health care — but not always in the way we expected.

Recent studies show that while A.I. has the potential to significantly improve medical care, doctors might not be using it to its full advantage. For instance, when radiologists were given A.I.-generated insights on chest X-rays, they often stuck to their own judgments, even when the A.I. was right. This led to less accurate diagnoses compared to when A.I. worked alone.

In one study, A.I. achieved an impressive 92% accuracy in diagnosing patients. Doctors using A.I. assistance, however, only reached 76% accuracy — barely better than their 74% accuracy without it. The takeaway? Simply handing doctors A.I. tools doesn’t automatically make things better.

So, what’s the solution? Experts suggest a different approach: dividing tasks between A.I. and doctors. Instead of forcing A.I. to act like a second opinion, let it handle tasks it’s good at, like analyzing complex data, while doctors focus on what they do best — interacting with patients and making informed decisions.

For example, doctors could start by gathering patient information through interviews and physical exams. A.I. could then step in to analyze that data and suggest possible diagnoses. Studies show this approach works better than letting A.I. handle everything, especially since it still struggles with nuanced conversations and follow-up questions.

The key is finding a balance. A.I. isn’t here to replace doctors but to complement their expertise. By embracing this partnership, health care could become more accurate, efficient, and patient-focused. After all, the future of medicine might just be a team effort — doctors and robots included.