Should the NHS roll out AI carers, with human staff on call when needed?
No AI system currently works as a carer in the NHS. Current national AI use covers administrative and clinical support, such as note-taking, triage and a Copilot assistant for about 505,000 staff, due by October 2026. The 2025 10 Year Health Plan aims for an AI-enabled NHS and leaves social care reform to the Casey Commission. AI carer-style services are limited to small pilots, such as a 2025 Richmond council trial of an AI support service for unpaid carers.
11 Opinions
AI isn't perfect. I was using it to plan a scenery driving route, and it got basic maths wrong when I asked about economy figures first time around. Yes, it corrected itself, but to me, that means it's not ready to look after anything.
Ai can't give the human interaction people need
Sure why not when they become available? Also if not allergic to animals give each and everyone a cat or the dog or whatever pet they feel they'd like.
Jesus christ, no
If a person needs looking after, human contact is top of the list. AI can help, but it can't remove the need for a human carer.
This is my poll, so I need to step up. I've been using AI daily for over a year now for Substack research, personal projects and coding. I'm 62, and I got my first computer in my teens. I've grown up digital, and even I find the power scary. I see the potential to cure all disease within a decade, and I see the hazards of a self-improving, self-replicating intelligence. Allowing them to care for us is a two-way street. They will see our fragility and fundamental goodness.
I get using AI to assist with triage but generally speaking, an algorithm can't wash a frail pensioner, notice they've stopped eating, or comfort a terrified dementia patient. Vulnerable people need human dignity and real care... This just seems like a gimmick to dodge funding social care properly and employing real people.
Yes, but who will take the responsibility for "when needed"?
Care has a massive staffing challenge, and a lot of monitoring work doesn’t get done reliably because staff are overloaded. We should be using technology to help raise standards. Stop thinking its replacing staff, its letting staff do more
AI can search massive databases and diagnose rapidly, leaving doctors to focus on checking borderline cases and actual treatment.