Artificial Intelligence – Perception of Clinical Laboratories’ Technical Staff a Nationwide Multicentre Survey in Pakistan

Introduction As Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology continues to assimilate into various industries, there is a huge scope in the healthcare industry specifically in clinical laboratories. The perspective of the laboratory professionals can give valuable insight on the ideal path to take for AI implementation. Methods The study utilized a cross-sectional survey design and was conducted at the section of Chemical Pathology, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, the Aga Khan University (AKU), Karachi, Pakistan in collaboration with Consultant Pathologists of 9 clinical laboratories associated with teaching hospitals across Pakistan from October-November 2023. The survey was for a duration of 2 weeks and was circulated to all working laboratory technical staff after informed consent. Results A total of 351 responses were received, of which 342 (male=146, female=196) responses were recorded after exclusion. Respondents ranged from technologists, faculty, residents, and coordinators, and were from different sections (chemical pathology, microbiology, haematology, histopathology, POCT). Out of the total 312 (91.2%) of respondents stated that they were at least somewhat familiar with AI technology. Experts in AI were only 2.0% (n=7) of all respondents, but 90% (n=6) of these were < 30 years old. 76.3% (n=261) of the respondents felt the need to implement more AI technology in the laboratories, with time saving (26.1%) and improving performances of tests (17.7%) cited to be the greatest benefits of AI. Security concerns (n=144) and a fear of decreasing personal touch (n=143) were the main concerns of the respondents while the younger employees had an increased fear of losing their jobs. 76.3% were in favour of an increase in AI usage in the laboratories. Conclusion This study highlights a favourable perspective among laboratory professionals, acknowledging the potential of AI to enhance both the efficiency and quality of laboratory practices. However, it underscores the importance of addressing their concerns in the thoughtful implementation of this emerging technology.