The Rise of AI in Social Care

Until a few years ago, many of us would never have given Artificial Intelligence a second thought. There was always a threat via Hollywood blockbusters that technology would be out to get us, but it had never seemed so certain until ChatGPT launched in November 2022 and showed us that AI had the ability to take over the world – or at least was powerful enough to get the whole world talking.

Whilst there isn’t a universally agreed definition, AI typically refers to systems that can perform tasks that would ordinarily require some form of human intelligence. The growth in usage over the past few decades has meant that the AI that was first introduced in 1956 now seems a far distant memory, and it has evolved alongside our ability to carry on creating further breakthroughs such as finding the Higgs Boson particle and landing on the moon’s south pole.

Whilst many corporate sectors are finding AI beneficial – especially when it comes to monotonous, repetitive tasks such as data entry, email responses, software testing and invoice generation – how is this technology likely to affect the social care sector across the UK?

Since its introduction a few years ago, AI has quickly developed into a useful tool for the social care sector. Some of its current key applications are:

Administrative automation: Being able to assign AI to transcribe and summarise meetings between social workers and those they care for can save a lot of time – there’s no need for the social workers to write up notes from scratch after meetings. These tools are called AI scribes, or ambient voice technologies¹.

Proactive monitoring: Using AI-powered smart sensors can help to make sure that care recipients stay safe. They can track and detect falls, movement and sleep patterns, alerting caregivers to any irregularities or abnormalities. This helps to avoid disruptive nightly room checks².

Personalised pain assessment: AI can help caregivers to assess pain in non-verbal care recipients by analysing micro-expressions through facial recognition software.

Companionship and independence: AI-powered voice assistants can be useful for reminding individuals that they need to take their medication, as well as assisting them with daily routines³.

Generative AI is still a new technology, and as such comes with its own risks. Learning to use it properly in a care setting is crucial.

Privacy: Because AI learns via pattern recognition, it needs a lot of information to come up with predictions and answers. You should follow your organisation’s policies about what you put into an AI tool, for example GDPR and the Data Protection Act of 2018. Don’t ever put sensitive information into AI chatbots that aren’t approved by your care organisation³.

Fairness: Depending on the data it was trained on, an AI might work better for some people rather than others. It’s always important to check the information given by the AI and make sure that it’s fair before you apply it in the real world. Don’t assume that the AI knows best – it’s simply a tool.

Accountability: As we’ve explained above, AI is simply a tool – it doesn’t think like humans do. That means it can’t be held accountable for its mistakes. Don’t rely on AI to make important final decisions about your job or someone’s care – it’s ultimately down to you.

Ultimately, AI can’t replace the real benefits of human interaction and understanding, as it’s a tool that needs to be regulated and used carefully to be effective. However, when it’s used properly, it can assist both caregivers and recipients in a multitude of ways. As it continues to evolve and be adopted more widely, it’s possible that we will see even more uses of it in the care sector in the future.

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Sources:

1. https://www.kingsfund.org.uk/insight-and-analysis/long-reads/emerging-ai-use-health-and-social-care

2. https://beta.digitisingsocialcare.co.uk/get-help-set-choose-and-use-technology/ai-care-delivery

3. https://beta.digitisingsocialcare.co.uk/get-help-set-choose-and-use-technology/ai-care-delivery

4. https://insightcollective.socialcare.wales/assets/documents/AI-Guide-for-the-social-care-sector-in-Wales.pdf

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