Why Artificial Intelligence Cannot Replace the Nurse in Healthcare: A (Neo)Thomistic Approach

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) plays an increasingly significant role in nursing care. Many scholars have not only discussed the nature of AI and the effects of its application in nursing practice, but also raised the question of whether AI can replace the nurse in healthcare. In this paper, I aim to demonstrate that the nature of AI is fundamentally distinct from the nature of the nurse, and therefore, AI cannot replace the nurse in the care of the patient. I present my argument in two main parts. In the first, I refer to the scholastic principle agere sequitur esse and to the classical conception of the human being as developed by (neo)Thomists. This means that the argument is grounded in the thought of Thomas Aquinas and certain representatives of neo-Thomism. According to the strategy adopted in this paper, the human being is understood as a person who elicits from within themselves specific personal acts. In the second part, I emphasize that, in contrast to the nurse, AI lacks several essential components that appear to be crucial for meeting the personal needs of patients. I conclude that, according to (neo)Thomistic assumptions, AI can neither replace the nurse nor be considered an equal partner, because it is not endowed with the personal capacities and components that are essential for providing proper care to the patient. The (neo)Thomistic perspective allows one to regard AI solely as a therapeutic tool.

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