Recognizing how artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to change allied health sciences in the future, faculty in the medical laboratory science program are training the next generation of lab leaders on using AI.
“AI can help you advance as a leader, but you have to be able to analyze it and critically think about it as a whole, which are skills you learn here at Rush,” says Nadine Lerret, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM, associate professor and MLS program director.
Streamlining tasks with AI
Lerret asks MLS students in her summer research course to experiment with AI tools like ChatGPT when writing grant proposals so they can learn the advantages and limitations of the technology firsthand.
“AI can take away the barriers if you are not a great writer, but it’s not perfect,” Lerret says. “The students learn that AI is not good at writing specific aims for a grant proposal or finding references. So, as a class, we can focus on building those skills without using any sort of AI.”
Using AI to improve job-seeking
Alex Hernandez, a second-year MLS student from Chicago, says learning how to use AI has been a benefit of her education at Rush. “The opportunity to use AI has enhanced my studies by creating an easier route to word things more professionally and to give me ideas I haven’t thought of before,” she says. “I take a long time on assignments and emails because I want to make sure I sound professional and use the right terminology in my field. Using AI makes it a little faster and easier to achieve.”
“AI can help you advance as a leader, but you have to be able to analyze it and critically think about it as a whole, which are skills you learn here at Rush.”
Nadine Lerret, PhD, MLS(ASCP)CM, associate professor and MLS program director
With guidance from Rush faculty, Hernandez also uses AI to help organize her thoughts when she is writing. Recently, she used AI to help polish up her resume. “I turned it into an AI generator so it could give me improvements — and it did,” she says. “It reworded my descriptions on my past job employments, and now my resume is much more presentable.”
Readying the next generation of lab leaders
By helping MLS students like Hernandez understand the best use of AI, Lerret hopes to give them an edge in a rapidly changing health care landscape.
Lerret also models the use of AI for other faculty at RUSH. She routinely uses ChatGPT to help her create rubrics for scoring student assignments. In addition, she has modified some writing assignments to video format to ensure that students use AI as a learning tool, rather than a shortcut.
“There’s definitely pros and cons to using AI in the classroom,” Lerret says. “At Rush, we’re trying to approach it critically but also utilize it for the most benefit.”