Primary care physicians attitudes toward artificial intelligence technologies in clinical medicine (survey results)

Objective. To investigate attitudes of general practitioners and family medicine physicians toward artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, and to assess the level of AI awareness, frequency of use, trust in AI conclusions, and subjective perception of the accuracy of AI diagnostic systems. Materials and methods. An anonymous online survey was conducted on the Anketolog.ru platform in March–May 2026. The sample included 105 specialists in Internal Medicine (n=82) and General Practice/Family Medicine (n=23), with 4 respondents reporting both specialties. The questionnaire comprised 26 closed-ended questions grouped into two thematic blocks. Statistical analysis included the Mann–Whitney U test, Kruskal–Wallis H test, Spearman rank correlation coefficient (ρ), and threshold-based cluster analysis. Results. Among the 105 participants, 75 were women (71.4%) and 30 were men (28.6%); mean age was 40.2±17.3 years. Thirty-three specialists (31.4%) did not use AI in their professional medical practice. Trust in AI conclusions was predominantly low: 68 (64.8%) physicians rated it as minimal or absent. Mean subjective accuracy of AI diagnostics was estimated at 49.8%, compared with 72.4% for physician diagnostics. Specialists with practical AI experience rated trust in AI algorithms significantly higher than those without (2.36 vs. 1.89 points; U=1394; p=0.014) and estimated AI accuracy higher (52.1% vs. 43.2%). Willingness to use AI personally was high: 87.6% of physicians expressed readiness to apply AI in their practice. No significant differences were found by age group (H=1.87; p=0.392) or type of medical organisation. Cluster analysis identified three groups: “Skeptics” (28.6%), “Moderates” (45.7%), and “Enthusiasts” (25.7%). Conclusion. Among general practitioners and internists, a moderate trust deficit toward AI persists alongside a pronounced willingness to use it. Real-world practical experience with AI technologies is the key predictor of a positive attitude toward AI. Keywords: artificial intelligence, internal medicine, general practice, family medicine, clinical decision support systems, survey.