AI in Psychiatry: Automating Tasks, Not Clinicians

Psychiatrist Christoph Correll, MD, said artificial intelligence should replace burdensome tasks in psychiatric care, not clinicians, and must have guardrails to prevent decision support systems from guessing. He discussed this vision in a recent interview with Psychiatric Times. Correll proposed patients complete avatar-based interviews at home before appointments to gather history, which they review and correct, allowing clinicians to focus visits on chief complaints. He also described a clinical decision support system that pulls patient data and suggests treatment options, but is barred from recommending when information is insufficient. Correll noted the system, developed with Mayo Clinic data from about 40,000 patients, aims to improve outcomes, though clinician uptake remains an open question. A 2025 review found only 7 of 84 AI mental health tools held regulatory clearance, with just 5 validation studies.