Healthcare cluster rolls out 'AI-free' periods for doctors to prevent deskilling

This is part of NUHS' efforts to ensure there is no loss of skills due to over-reliance on technology

- Lee Li Ying

Healthcare cluster National University Health System (NUHS) has been rolling out artificial intelligence-free periods for doctors in the past year as part of efforts to prevent deskilling.

Deskilling is the loss of previously held skills due to over-reliance on technology.

Another cluster, the National Healthcare Group (NHG), is exploring similar measures.

During these "Al-free" periods, the healthcare professionals do not use AI tools for clinical work or assessments.

Other possible ways to curb deskilling include tracking clinicians' performance and educating medical students and clinicians about the risks of using Al.

The threat was highlighted by a study that found that in just a few months, experienced doctors who used AI assistance to detect precancerous growths in the colon were less adept at doing so without the tool.

Published in The Lancet Gastroenterology And Hepatology journal in August 2025, the study involved doctors at four endoscopy centres in Poland who use an AI tool for the detection of polyps, which could either be benign or cancerous.

In the three months before the technology's roll-out, doctors detected growths in roughly 28 per cent of colonoscopies, but the rate later dropped to around 22 per cent.

As Singapore's population rapidly ages and demand for healthcare services rises, AI is being deployed in the public healthcare sector to enable faster and more accurate diagnosis, for use in predictive analytics for early intervention, and to automate routine tasks.

The Straits Times approached the three healthcare clusters and medical schools here to ask how they manage the risk of AI deskilling.