Mental Health Workers Say Algorithmic Triage Is Hurting Patients
Mental health workers at Kaiser Permanente are raising concerns about the negative impact of algorithmic triage tools on patient care. They report that automation has led to increased patient frustration, dangerous delays, and barriers to accessing necessary psychiatric services.
Why it matters
This highlights the ethical and practical risks of deploying AI in high-stakes healthcare environments, fueling debates over regulation and labor rights.
Workers and policymakers are pushing for safeguards around AI’s use in health care through collective bargaining and legislation.
Share When Kaiser Permanente triage clinician Harimandir Khalsa began working in the psychiatry department at Kaiser’s Walnut Creek Medical Center in Northern California, she was on a team of nine people. Today, just over three years later, she is one of only three triage clinicians left. Some of the work once handled by employees has shifted to automated and algorithmic tools.
This change has coincided with a sharp increase in the number of patients who are upset by the time they speak to her. On a typical day, as many as a third of her almost two dozen triage calls are with patients who have struggled to access appropriate care.
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