Patient agency and large language models in worldwide encoding of equity

Antonis A Armoundas; Joseph Loscalzo

doi:10.1038/s41746-025-01598-y

Patient agency and large language models in worldwide encoding of equity

NPJ Digit Med. 2025 May 8;8(1):258. doi: 10.1038/s41746-025-01598-y.

Authors

Antonis A Armoundas^{1

2}, Joseph Loscalzo^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Cardiovascular Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. armoundas.antonis@mgh.harvard.edu.
² Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA. armoundas.antonis@mgh.harvard.edu.
³ Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
⁴ Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.

Abstract

Large language models progressively result in improved ways of patient engagement and access to healthcare, reaching both an exciting and concerning time, as they no longer serve solely as a guide to clinicians, but, for the first time enable patients to make decisions that directly affect their health. We present the benefits and risks of this paradigm-shift in the practice of medicine, that offers the possibility of promoting health equity.

Publication types

Review