Will AI replace Health Informatics Specialists?

AI can do 90% of the work Health Informatics Specialists do at least twice as fast. People already use it for 3 of their 17 tasks, while 12 more are ready but barely used so far. 2 still need a person.

AI is already doing this3 · 20% of time

People already use AI for these tasks in real work, based on Anthropic's analysis of how Claude is used.

  • Design, develop, select, test, implement, and evaluate new or modified informatics solutions, data structures, and decision-support mechanisms to support patients, health care professionals, and their information management and human-computer and human-technology interactions within health care contexts.Mostly automated13% of time
  • Develop or implement policies or practices to ensure the privacy, confidentiality, or security of patient information.Mostly automated4% of time
  • Read current literature, talk with colleagues, and participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in informatics.Mostly assisted4% of time

AI could do this next12 · 70% of time

AI can speed these up by at least half, but real use has not caught up yet. These are next in line.

  • Translate nursing practice information between nurses and systems engineers, analysts, or designers, using object-oriented models or other techniques.10% of time
  • Develop or deliver training programs for health information technology, creating operating manuals as needed.10% of time
  • Use informatics science to design or implement health information technology applications for resolution of clinical or health care administrative problems.9% of time
  • Develop, implement, or evaluate health information technology applications, tools, processes, or structures to assist nurses with data management.8% of time
  • Analyze and interpret patient, nursing, or information systems data to improve nursing services.8% of time
  • Apply knowledge of computer science, information science, nursing, and informatics theory to nursing practice, education, administration, or research, in collaboration with other health informatics specialists.5% of time
  • Develop strategies, policies or procedures for introducing, evaluating, or modifying information technology applied to nursing practice, administration, education, or research.5% of time
  • Identify, collect, record, or analyze data relevant to the nursing care of patients.5% of time
  • Analyze computer and information technologies to determine applicability to nursing practice, education, administration, and research.4% of time
  • Disseminate information about nursing informatics science and practice to the profession, other health care professions, nursing students, and the public.3% of time
  • Design, conduct, or provide support to nursing informatics research.3% of time
  • Inform local, state, national, and international health policies related to information management and communication, confidentiality and security, patient safety, infrastructure development, and economics.1% of time

Still needs a person2 · 10% of time

No real AI use, no proven AI speedup and no robot that can do it yet. This is the part of the job to build on.

  • Provide consultation to nurses regarding hardware or software configuration.9% of time
  • Plan, install, repair, or troubleshoot telehealth technology applications or systems in homes.1% of time

Your week is not the average

Describe what you actually do and get a personal report: your own tasks, what AI can already do, what stays yours and a 90 day plan.

Get my personal report

What this means

AI can already do almost all of this work at least twice as fast. Real use is still behind at 18 out of 100, so the change here is only getting started. Expect the role to shift toward deciding what to do, checking AI's work and owning the result.

What to do next

  • Do the 3 tasks AI is already handling with AI yourself. Your peers already are, and it is quickly becoming the baseline.
  • Get ahead on the 12 tasks AI could do next. These move as tools improve, so learning them early pays off.
  • Build on the 2 tasks that stay human. This is where your judgment, skill and relationships matter most.
Computer Systems Analysts94%Information Security Analysts100%Network and Computer Systems Administrators90%Computer Programmers90%Computer Network Architects91%Information Technology Project Managers89%

Get the weekly brief

One short email a week on how AI is changing work, including jobs like this one.

Check another job