Perception of Medical Speciality Professors towards Including Artificial Intelligence in their Curricula.

BACKGROUND: Medical residents have shown interest in artificial intelligence (AI) for their clinical and academic activities; however, research on the perception of speciality professors regarding AI is lacking. AIMS: To estimate the proportion of medical professors who perceive it necessary to include AI in the curricula of their specialities, along with their self-efficacy, perceived benefits and identified barriers to AI tools. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Cross-sectional study of 108 medical speciality professors in Monterrey, Mexico, in June 2024. We sent them a self-administered questionnaire that included questions about the professors' perceptions of the need to incorporate AI in the specialities' curricula, their self-efficacy, benefits, barriers to AI and other variables. We estimated relative frequencies, 95% confidence intervals (CI), measures of central tendency and dispersion. Self-efficacy, benefits and barriers scores were compared by interest variables using the Mann-Whitney or Student's t-tests. P < 0.05 was significant. RESULTS: Ninety-eight professors (90.7%, 95% CI: 85.3-96.2) considered it necessary to incorporate AI into their academic programmes. Self-efficacy scores were higher among those working in the private sector and those with a course, workshop or diploma in AI. In addition, those with a master's degree or a doctorate, who had completed a course, workshop or diploma, showed higher benefits scores. CONCLUSIONS: Nine out of ten professors of medical specialities believe it is necessary to include AI in their curricula, with a high perception of its self-efficacy and benefits. Academic authorities in medical specialisation should examine the growing integration of AI in modern educational environments.