"I Came Because ChatGPT Made Me Worried"... Doctor Responds, "Is There No Reason for Doctors to Exist?"

Story of Office Worker Visiting Hospital After Consulting ChatGPT Sparks Debate
34% of U.S. Adults Use AI for Health and Medical Issues

There is ongoing debate after reports emerged that an office worker, who consulted an artificial intelligence (AI) tool, ChatGPT, about their symptoms before visiting a hospital, was reproached by the doctor for having referred to AI.

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Recently, a post titled "The doctor got angry when I went to the hospital after consulting ChatGPT" was uploaded to an online community. According to the author, Mr. A, he had felt chest tightness and shortness of breath for a few days. Concerned that it might be something serious, he searched the internet and explained his symptoms to ChatGPT, a generative AI platform. ChatGPT responded along the lines of, "You cannot rule out issues related to the heart or lungs—it's best to get checked at a hospital."

Mr. A said, "I was scared, but I figured there was nothing to lose by going to the hospital, so I went right away, just in case." Fortunately, the test results showed nothing serious. The attending doctor also said it was not a situation to be overly worried about. The consultation passed without any particular issues, but the problem arose afterward.

While continuing to talk with the doctor, Mr. A casually mentioned, "I asked ChatGPT about my symptoms, and it suggested this could be the issue, so I came here out of concern." Upon hearing this, the doctor, who had previously explained things kindly, sighed and said, "If everyone comes to the hospital just because AI tells them to, what are we supposed to do?" Mr. A clarified, "I didn't come because I thought I was diagnosed by AI, I was just concerned and used it for reference." Even so, the doctor replied, "Don't look at those things; it only makes you unnecessarily anxious. There's a reason doctors exist."

Mr. A expressed his frustration, saying, "I wasn't pointing fingers at the doctor by saying, 'AI said this,' nor was I misusing medication, yet I heard such words. When symptoms are ambiguous, should I not even search and just automatically go to the hospital first? Isn't it better that I came to check in person, rather than blindly trusting AI and not visiting the hospital at all?"

This story sparked debate among internet users. Some commented, "There are many patients who come to the hospital and say, 'AI said I have this disease,' because they trust ChatGPT too much," and, "If several patients a day say, 'AI said this,' it's understandable for doctors to get annoyed." However, others argued, "The author didn't blindly trust the AI's diagnosis, so it seems the doctor's reaction was excessive," and, "It's not appropriate for the doctor to snap at a patient in any case."

Meanwhile, according to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in the United States from June 22 to 28, 2026, 34% of 3,488 adults said they had used an AI chatbot for reasons related to health or medical care.

More specifically, 28% said they use AI chatbots to quickly obtain health information, 25% use them to determine the cause of symptoms, and 22% use them to obtain treatment-related information or to further research diagnoses made by doctors. Furthermore, 15% said they use AI chatbots to help decide whether to visit a hospital.

OpenAI also announced that, as of July, over 300 million people a week were using ChatGPT to understand test results, prepare for medical consultations, better comprehend doctors' explanations, or develop healthy lifestyle habits by asking health-related questions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.