Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Radiology: An Evaluation of Technology Readiness and Ethical Perspectives Among Future Medical Practitioners

Abstract

Introduction: Radiology stands at the forefront of artificial intelligence integration in medicine, with artificial intelligence algorithms demonstrating performance comparable to experienced radiologists in diagnostic imaging tasks. Medical students, as future clinicians and referring physicians, require adequate knowledge of and positive attitudes towards artificial intelligence-driven radiology. Despite growing global interest, data from South Asian medical education contexts remain critically scarce.

Aims: To assess technology readiness, digital literacy, and ethical awareness regarding radiological artificial intelligence among medical students at a tertiary teaching hospital in Nepal.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 227 consenting medical students using a structured, self-administered 41-item questionnaire with five-point Likert scale responses. Domain scores for knowledge, attitudes, and ethical perspectives were computed. Independent-samples t-tests and one-way ANOVA were used for group comparisons.

Results: Of 227 participants (mean age 21.3±1.8 years; 55.9% male), 56.8% demonstrated adequate artificial intelligence knowledge. Mean domain scores were: knowledge 3.21±0.62, attitude 3.46±0.59, and ethical awareness 4.06±0.60 (out of 5). Among knowledge items, recognition of artificial intelligence assistance in radiological image interpretation was the highest-rated, with 57.2% of students in agreement. Students with formal artificial intelligence teaching had significantly higher attitude scores (3.64±0.68 vs 3.40±0.54; p=0.008). Only 25.1% had received formal artificial intelligence education.

Conclusion: Medical students in Nepal show moderate artificial intelligence knowledge, positive attitudes, and high ethical awareness, with the strongest clinical artificial intelligence recognition centered on radiological applications. Radiology departments should lead the integration of structured artificial intelligence literacy programs into undergraduate medical curricula across South Asia, where ethical awareness is high but formal artificial intelligence education remains critically insufficient.