Implications of Artificial Intelligence Use on the Mental Health of Medical Students

Estrada-Araoz E.G. · Revista Cubana de Educacion Medica Superior (2026)

Resumen

Introduction: In recent years, the use of artificial intelligence in medical education has grown rapidly, especially through applications and chatbots designed to provide emotional support. This expansion is taking place in a context of heavy academic demands, peer competition, and persistent stigma surrounding mental health, factors that shape how students seek and receive support. Objective: To analyze the impact of artificial intelligence on the mental health of medical students. Development: artificial intelligence-based applications are appealing due to their accessibility, anonymity, and constant availability, particularly for students with limited time or reluctance to seek in-person support. However, their responses are inconsistent, lack genuine empathy, and may foster dependence or reproduce cultural biases. Concerns also persist regarding privacy, data handling, and institutional responsibility. Furthermore, integrating artificial intelligence into medical training can reduce the complexity of emotional experiences to standardized categories that do not capture the full depth of human suffering. Conclusions: artificial intelligence can offer support to some students, but it does not replace the presence, listening, and human accompaniment that sustain clinical training. Using it responsibly requires discussing its ethical implications, understanding how it works, and teaching students to recognize its limits. Only then will it be possible to use these tools with sound judgment, without allowing technology to overshadow the human dimension that gives meaning to medical practice.

Instituciones: Universidad Nacional Amazónica de Madre de Dios