The Pause Is the Safety Feature

Today in Bellevue, Washington, I gave my sixth TEDx talk. I asked the TEDxFactoria audience to imagine a tired emergency physician at 2 a.m. An AI tool suggests muscle strain for a man with back pain. Before the doctor clicks to accept, one detail deserves another look. The blood pressure readings differ between the patient’s arms.

Three questions to ask before acting on an AI recommendation

• What did we actually ask? Asking for the most likely cause of back pain leaves another question open. What would be dangerous to miss?
• What would change our mind? In this case, the difference between the two blood pressure readings gives the physician a reason to reconsider muscle strain.
• Who owns the call? The treating physician decides what to do next and can ask a colleague for a second look.

Thank you to the TEDxFactoria team and everyone who took that pause with me.