Before you see the doctor: how an AI assistant can help you prepare, and where to stop

The appointment is short, the list in your head is long, and the thing you most wanted to ask comes back to you in the car park. That is a problem of organisation, and organising words is the kind of job AI assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot and Gemini are built for.

Deciding anything about your health is a different job, and it is not theirs. This guide is general information, not medical advice, and it keeps firmly to the first job.

The honest position

People already type health questions into AI assistants. The World Health Organization (WHO) warned in 2023 that these systems “generate responses that can appear authoritative and plausible to an end user”, yet may be completely incorrect or contain serious errors, especially on health.

An assistant has not read your records and cannot examine you. Its answer can be wrong, or right in general and wrong for you.

The companies that make them say much the same, at the time of writing:

• ChatGPT: OpenAI’s usage policies bar using its services to provide tailored advice that requires a licence, such as medical advice, without appropriate involvement by a licensed professional.
• Claude: Anthropic’s usage policy treats healthcare decisions, diagnosis and medical guidance as a high-risk use. Where Claude is used to give advice or make decisions directly affecting individuals in those areas, the policy requires a qualified professional to review the output first.
• Copilot: Microsoft’s terms say not to use Copilot as a substitute for professional advice, and to verify what it tells you before relying on it.
• Gemini: Google’s privacy hub says not to rely on Gemini for diagnosis, treatment or medical advice.

What it is good for

Everything here is preparation and understanding. None of it is deciding.

A clear timeline. An assistant can put a jumble of dates and half-remembered details in order and cut it to something you can read out in a minute.

Your three questions. The NHS (the UK health service) advises writing down your two or three most important questions before an appointment. The US National Institute on Aging adds: put the list in order and ask about the most important items first. An assistant can help you whittle nine worries down to three. For models, the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality publishes ten, including “What is the test for?” and “Are there any alternatives?”.

A term you have already been given. If a clinic letter or a medicine leaflet contains a word you do not know, ask for a plain-words explanation so that you can ask a better question about it.

Rehearsing something awkward. Ask for two or three plain ways to open a conversation you find hard to start.

Writing it up afterwards. The NHS suggests writing down what you discussed and what happens next. Dictate what you remember while it is fresh, have it tidied, then correct it yourself.

Three requests to copy

Put your own notes where the square brackets are, and leave out names and anything else that identifies you or, if you are a carer, the person you look after.

Here are my rough notes about a problem I am seeing my doctor about: [your notes]. Put them into a short timeline in date order that I can read aloud in under a minute. Do not suggest causes or treatments.

I have a short appointment. Here is everything I am wondering about: [your list]. Help me word the three most important as short, clear questions. Do not answer them.

A letter I have been given uses the term [term]. Explain in plain words what that term generally means, and suggest two questions I could ask my doctor about it. Do not say what it means for me, and do not suggest causes or treatments.

The last sentence of each keeps the assistant on the job of organising.

Where to stop

• Do not ask it whether to start, stop or change a medicine. That question belongs to your prescriber or pharmacist.
• Do not use it to decide whether a symptom can wait. It cannot see you, and its reassurance is worth nothing.
• Do not paste in records, or anything carrying a name, date of birth, or NHS or insurance number, whether yours or someone else’s. The WHO notes these systems may not protect sensitive health data, and Google asks Gemini users not to enter confidential information they would not want a reviewer to see. More on this in what to tell an AI and what to keep private.
• Do not treat its explanation as the last word. Take anything surprising to your pharmacist or doctor.

Urgent and emergency help

Never put an urgent question to a chatbot.

UK: call 999 for a life-threatening emergency. If you think you need medical help right now, or you are not sure whether to call 999, the NHS says NHS 111 can help: use 111 online, the NHS App, or call 111.

US: call 911 in an emergency.

Where to check what you read

Use the NHS website in the UK, and MedlinePlus (from the US National Library of Medicine) or the National Institute on Aging in the US.

Then there is your pharmacist. The NHS says pharmacists can advise on how to use a medicine and on worries about side effects.

MedlinePlus puts the principle well: discuss what you find with your health care provider before you rely on it, because they can tell you whether it is good “for you”.

This week

1. Start a note headed with the date of your next appointment.
2. Add things as they happen, with the day.
3. A few days before, try the first two requests above.
4. Put your medicines, vitamins and supplements on the same sheet, or bring them, as the NHS and the National Institute on Aging both advise.
5. Afterwards, write up what was said and what happens next.

For what these assistants are and how to begin, start with AI after 50: the complete guide. Walk in with one page, and walk out having asked what you came to ask.