House Deputy Speaker Proposes AI to Address Indonesia's Doctor Shortage

Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives’ Commission IX, Nihayatul Wafiroh, has proposed the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to help address the persistent shortage of doctors in Indonesia.

Speaking during a working meeting with the Health Minister at the parliamentary complex in Jakarta on Thursday (25/6), Nihayatul questioned whether AI could be used to help analyse patients’ illnesses in areas lacking medical personnel. “I am not a medical professional, but I imagine that now we see many sectors being assisted by AI,” she said.

She expressed concern upon hearing that some regions have no doctors at all, whilst noting that medical education requires a long time, including internships and other training, unlike other fields where graduates can immediately enter the workforce. Nihayatul acknowledged that funding education for local students to become doctors is a good long-term solution, but asked whether existing technology could substitute for the physical presence of a doctor, even if not optimally, for certain illnesses.

During the same meeting, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin highlighted the severe shortage of doctors as the main cause of high workloads for medical staff, from general practitioners to specialist trainees and interns. He noted that many community health centres lack specialist doctors, citing the example of Mamberamo Raya Regency in Papua, where the local regent reported having no specialist doctors, no dentists, and 12 out of 17 community health centres operating without a doctor.