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Editorial
AI: the new frontier in nursing
  1. Sue Tranka
  1. Nursing Office, NHS Wales, Cardiff, Wales, UK
  1. Correspondence to Sue Tranka; Sue.Tranka{at}gov.wales

https://doi.org/10.1136/ebnurs-2025-104293

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    The healthcare industry stands on the precipice of a transformative revolution led by advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) and its power to democratise knowledge and understanding. Among the many facets of healthcare that AI is reshaping, nursing, a profession that combines critical thinking, technical expertise with human empathy is poised for profound change.

    As the demands on nurses grow, AI offers a new frontier to enhance care, streamline workflows and address persistent challenges in the field. The integration of AI into nursing not only transforms the way care is delivered but also prompts critical ethical considerations and invites a re-imagining of the nursing profession in the 21st century.

    The case for AI in nursing

    Nursing is one of the most demanding yet rewarding professions in the world. Nurses are responsible for promotive, protective, preventative, curative, rehabilitation and palliative care and are often the safety-critical factor in delivering sustainable health care—all under tight time constraints and often with limited resources. The global shortage of nurses exacerbates these challenges. According to the WHO, there is a projected shortfall of 10 million healthcare workers by 2030, with nurses constituting a significant portion of that gap.

    Enter AI: A technology capable of augmenting human capabilities and optimising workflows. AI can assist nurses by automating repetitive tasks, enhancing decision-making and individualising patient care. For example, algorithms can analyse vast amounts of patient data, bringing together disparate and complex information from multiple systems to aid decision-making and to detect early warning signs of deterioration, helping nurses intervene before a condition worsens. In Ireland, nurses are using Robotic Process Automation (RPA), a system widely used in the NHS to help with procurement and finance to undertake multiple complex repetitive tasks to bring together healthcare-acquired infection information from multiple systems, saving specialist infection control nurses hours of time trawling through digital systems to more quickly …

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    Footnotes

    • Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.

    • Competing interests None declared.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; internally peer reviewed.