What should I be aware of when using AI and how do I stay safe?
Artificial intelligence has been around for a long time. So has the hype and the fear mongering. Should we be scared? No, but I think it deserves a serious look because there are some incredible benefits too. I am starting a series specifically so that we can get down to what it really was built for, and that is to help us improve efficiency, automate tedious tasks and optimize productivity.
In previous blogs, I touched on where AI came from, how it’s evolving, and what changes have brought about this huge resurgence in its value. Then we talked about where in dentistry AI can really help our practices. Before we do that though, we need to have a serious conversation about the risk and rewards of using AI.
There has been a lot in the news about AI and that it will eventually take over the world. I will say right now, that the only way that is going to happen is if we let it. AI is essentially data, but we make decisions about what it can and will have power over. If we choose to only get our news and information from AI, then yes, it will have complete control over what we learn, ingest and form ideas around. Knowledge is literally power with respect to AI.
This is also a warning about AI in a dental practice. There are several AI programs (Co-Pilot is one) that will ingest any data that it has access to. The question is what does it have access to? It’s important to set up sensitivity labels and review user based access to all data before turning Co-Pilot on in your environment. With any AI program, it’s absolutely essential to be fully aware of where it will be pulling data from, and who will have access to it. For example if you have all of your employee files and your businesses financial data saved on your office computer and you turned Co-Pilot on, your front desk employees may have access to all of that data. What if your front desk scanned a bunch of patient documents on to their desktop and then forgot to delete them? Who now has access to all of that patient information? Are we going to assume that because people do not yet know how to use Co-Pilot that data is safe? What about Gemini, ChatGPT or Claude?
The more powerful the tool, the greater the need to set up security and boundaries to ensure that we are not inadvertently creating data breaches. That goes for any AI program, because as we know, data and knowledge are power, so the more that it aggressively searches for, uses and incorporates data, the more powerful and dangerous it becomes. So your work for this week is to open up your favorite AI companion to date, and type in, “ What security measures are in place in this AI model? Where do you get your data from? What personal documents do you have access to?” Type in each one at a time continuing to ask it questions until you get an answer that is clear and helps you to understand that tools risks.
When I do risk assessments at a practice, I always start with the data. Where is your data located, who has access to the data and how is that access controlled? Data control and access is the backbone of HIPAA and NIST, the two documents that help us decide how we need to protect patient data. I want to emphasize to all dentists and business owners that by protecting patient data, you are also protecting your practice and your business. When I look at risk, this is really the risk to your business, your lifeline and your people, both at work and at home.
So when we look at AI, there is a huge upside, but there is also risk. Addressing the risk to your practice and business needs to include AI in that assessment. You can learn more about risk assessments here. Now that we understand the risk, the next step is to jump in! How do I use it?
