How To Integrate Chatbots Into Geriatric Psychiatry

Abstract

Chatbots may be remarkably useful for seniors by providing companionship, cognitive enhancement, organizational cues, resource information, medical information, and help managing medications. Chatbots may also remarkably harmful for seniors by promoting misinformation, scamming, invasion of privacy, and unwanted advertising. Tech companies have been irresponsible in failing to provide safety guardrails, privacy protections, and monitoring and reporting of adverse consequences. A hybrid model of geriatric care will likely be optimal in the future. Clinicians will need to up their game to include chatbots in the treatment of patients; chatbots will need to up their game to be more specific and safer for geriatric patients.