Use of AI in healthcare reaches 18% of establishments in the country

The The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the health sector already affects 18% of Brazilian healthcare establishments – 11% of public ones and 21% of private ones.

The data, released this Tuesday (12), refer to 2025, and are from the 12th edition of the ICT Health survey, by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br), which interviewed 3,270 managers of healthcare establishments in the country.

The survey is organized by the Regional Center for Studies for the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br) – department of the Ponto BR Information and Coordination Center (NIC.br).

“In recent years, we have observed a rapid dissemination of Artificial Intelligence technologies. Therefore, it has become important to expand the investigation to understand how these technologies have been incorporated by all healthcare establishments”, explains the manager of the Regional Center for Studies for the Development of the Information Society (Cetic.br), Alexandre Barbosa.

According to the research, the main AI applications in the Brazilian healthcare sector are:

• • Organize clinical and administrative processes (45% of establishments);

• • Improve digital security (36%);

• • Improve the efficiency of treatments (32%);

• • Logistics assistant (31%);

• • Support human resources management or recruitment (27%);

• • Assist in diagnoses (26%) and

• • Assist with medication dosage (14%).

Challenges

According to the survey, the adoption of AI in the country still faces significant obstacles. In hospitals with more than 50 beds, for example, managers point to high costs (63%), lack of institutional prioritization (56%) and limitations related to data and training (51%) for the adoption of the new technology.

“The advancement of the use of AI in healthcare requires qualified professionals so that this technology can be applied in a safe and responsible way. Furthermore, the consolidation of guidelines and regulatory frameworks is essential to sustain the ethical adoption of AI in a sector that deals with sensitive information and directly impacts patient care”, highlights the coordinator of research projects at Cetic.br, Luciana Portilho.

The survey also shows that 9% of establishments use the internet of things; and 5%, robotic technology using the internet.

Online services made available to patients, such as viewing test results, were offered by 39% of establishments; scheduling appointments, by 34%; and exams, by 32%.