AI Versus Family Physicians: Evaluating ChatGPT-4o’s Responses to Common Primary Care Queries

Study Background and Disease Burden

Primary care forms the cornerstone of comprehensive healthcare, addressing a wide range of medical concerns from acute illnesses to chronic disease management and preventive care. The growing demand on family physicians often limits time available for thorough patient education and individualized counseling. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, especially large language models like ChatGPT-4o, have emerged as potential adjunct tools in healthcare delivery. They promise rapid, consistent, and detailed responses to patient queries, possibly supplementing physician advice and improving outcomes. Evaluating AI’s capability against human clinicians is critical to define its role, especially given that primary care inquiries often entail nuanced, patient-centered communication that blends medical accuracy with empathy.

Study Design