Lived Experiences of Nurses Managing Patients Using AI Chabot for Health Advice in Private Hospitals of Lahore: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Background: Patients increasingly use artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot to seek symptom explanations, medication information, and self-care guidance before or during hospital encounters. Health chatbot can improve access to information, but the literature also identifies concerns related to accuracy, privacy, transparency, bias, and the need for human oversight (Laymouna et al., 2024; World Health Organization [WHO], 2021, 2024). Nurses are often the first professionals who must respond when patients bring AI-generated advice into clinical conversations.

Aim: This study aimed to explore the lived experiences of nurses managing patients who used AI chatbot for health advice in private hospitals of Lahore.

Methods: A phenomenological qualitative design was used in this study. Thirty nurses were purposively selected from five private hospitals in Lahore: 18 female and 12 male nurses, aged 25-40 years, all holding Pakistan Nursing Council licenses and having a minimum of two years of clinical experience. Semi-structured interviews were conducted from January to April 2026. Sample size was justified through purposive information-rich selection and thematic saturation monitoring, rather than statistical power calculation, which is consistent with qualitative inquiry (Guest et al., 2020; Tong et al., 2007). Data were managed using a qualitative data analysis method involving familiarization, open coding, axial coding, theme development, peer debriefing, and  NVivo-assisted organization (Braun & Clarke, 2006; Nowell et al., 2017).

Results: Five themes were generated: patient confidence in chatbot advice, nurses' verification burden, ethical tension between autonomy and safety, trust repair in nurse-patient communication, and the need for AI literacy and hospital policy. Nurses described patients arriving with chatbot-generated explanations, asking nurses to validate AI recommendations, delaying care because of online reassurance, or challenging professional advice.

Conclusion: The findings suggest that AI chatbot use changes nursing communication and safety work. Private hospitals should develop AI-related patient education, verification pathways, and continuing professional development for nurses.