AI Literacy, Safety & Ethics in Holistic Practice
Safeguarding Patients and Practitioners in the Age of AI
The “Dr. AI” phenomenon is already in your waiting room.
AI is already being built as part of all digital infrastructure whether you like it or not.
Finding the Balance:
Where Do You Stand with AI in your Clinic?
AI is here to stay. It’s already likely affecting you and your practice. It doesn’t matter if you are a Medical Herbalist, a Nutritional Therapist, Acupuncturist, Iridologist, Functional Doctor or any other form of Naturopath. In fact, if you use emails & search engines then you are already likely using it even if you aren’t “actively” wanting to and soon all of our phones will have “Edge AI” where AI is built into the device. This is why I am drawing from my tech background experience and knowledge to help practitioners, Professional Associations & Organisations to take the appropriate measures to safeguard themselves and their patients while we enter this new age of AI.
You might tell yourself that you aren’t bothering with AI
OR
You might tell yourself that you are confident in using AI
But do you truly understand how it can impact you and your clinic?
Many practitioners fall somewhere on the spectrum between the following two traps.
Both are dangerous for your practice without appropriate understanding:
WHAT AI IS and WHAT IT IS NOT.
The 3 Main Hidden Dangers of AI that affect YOU and YOUR patient!
Hallucinations (The Confident Liar)
AI models are prediction engines, not truth engines. They routinely invent non-existent studies, cite toxic dosages for herbs, or fabricate nutrient interactions with 100% confidence.
Sycophancy (The Echo Chamber)
AI is trained to please the user. If a patient asks for a restricted fad diet or presents a delusion, the AI will validate their bias rather than challenging it with clinical wisdom.
Regurgitation (Loss of Soul)
AI scrapes data but strips away context. It ignores energetics, constitution, and the “therapeutic relationship,” reducing our complex modalities to mere data points. This is behind the term “AI Slop”.
Are you using “Free” internet services? Hotmail, Gmail, ProtonMail, or perhaps a free AI service?
You may not be GDPR compliant!
If you are a practitioner from the UK or Ireland/EU, you must comply to GDPR regulation.
With the deep integration of AI into free services, not having appropriate accounts with binding contracts between the Data Controller (you) and the Data Processor (the service) then you are not complying to regulation requirements.
You must have a contract, such as a Data Protection Agreement/Addendum (DPA) with each service. Some providers offer it as an addendum as part of the contract, others require you to digitally sign it in their settings (Google Workspace, Proton business tiers etc…).
If you are using any free service, the data between you and your patient is not protected, instead it may be used for AI training or marketing analysis.
“Free” is not truly Free, the data is the product you are offering to the company.
Always aim for business tiered subscriptions and check DPA compliance for “Special Category Data” (e.g. heatlh data)
Get in touch for an AI and Digital privacy Audit & Consultation.
If you are unsure and want my help, especially after attending one of my courses. I do consultancies for the same cost of my herbal medicine clinic (63€ for an hour or 93€ for 90 mins).
I can help you audit your internet services, check you have DPA agreements with your web designer or other internet services, offer suggestions or ideas based on your priorities. And you can ask any questions you may have.
Please feel free to reach out to me and book a time that suits us. You can use the below contact form or email me at info@celticfoxherbal.com.
Get “AI Literate” – The theory and practice to “Drive” AI safely and deal with patients using AI appropriately.
For now, I run regular deep-dives to equip practitioners with the skills to correct “Dr. AI,” protect patient data, and how to use these tools safely. This is in an attempt to bring practitioners up to speed with AI developments while their associations catch up with their own policies.
You can see my upcoming workshops below. You can also book me for a private consultancy, just get in touch!
AI Literacy Heritage School of Herbal Medicine SpecialONLINE
Online
Common Questions
I’m just but a simple Naturopath, not a techie. Surely I don’t need this? – WRONG !
Because your patients will bring you AI-generated meal plans that ignore their specific gut history. You must be the expert who can explain why the machine is wrong.
Is it safe to put client notes into ChatGPT?
No ! Or at least not if you use the FREE version (of any Large Language Model) and ensure that you have adequate privacy settings set in place.
I can teach you how to use “Private/Local” AI tools that comply with GDPR/DPA/HIPAA, ensuring you never feed Big Tech your client’s private health data.
Will AI replace holistic practitioners?
AI cannot read a pulse, assess tongue quality, or build genuine trust. It can not hold a human’s hand nor has it intuition.
Although, Humans using AI ethically will replace those who ignore the risks. I’m not saying you have to embrace using it, but you need to know about it just as much as you know your anatomy and the intricacies of your modality
I already know everything about AI and confidently use it. – Are you sure?
Maybe you are right. What am I to say. But I have a few questions for you to check if that statement is true:
Do you know what a token is?
Do you know the “context” of the AI tool you are using?
Are you aware about sycophancy, hallucinations and regurgitation? How to spot them?
Do you know what an LLM (Large Language Model like ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude etc…) is in comparison to the an AGIs? (or at least non-existent to the public).
If you answer no to any of these questions, then you are not safely using AI.
Who does it affect?
Everyone! Herbalists, Naturopaths, Nutritional Therapists, Acupuncturists, Iridologists, the list goes on. No one will be void of AI’s reach and influence. We need to take measures now to safeguard our clinics, our patients and professional associations.