3.5 Year PhD Studentship in Artificial Intelligence for Eliciting Patient Histories in London

A 3.5 year PhD studentship in Artificial Intelligence for Eliciting Patient Histories funded by the National Institute for Health Research UCL UCLH Biomedical Research Centre is available within the Institute of Health Informatics. The studentship will commence from 1st February 2027 under the supervision of Professor Paul Taylor.

The aim is to understand how AI tools can be integrated into patient consultations to improve the quality of the interaction with the patient. The consultation is the most important encounter in medical practice, the defining event in almost all episodes of care. Over the last few years, consultations have begun to be transformed by the almost simultaneous adoption of two distinct forms of technology:

• AI scribes: Designed to make consultations more patient-centred by automating the associated administrative tasks. These tools passively record the audio content of the consultation, transcribe it and then propose a summary for the doctor to review before entering onto the record.
• Conversational agents or chatbots: Provides a low-cost alternative to a clinical consultation, eliciting information from a patient.

You will identify the insights and frameworks in the literature on conventional encounters and practice of history-taking and shared decision-making that seem most relevant for the design of conversational agents. We will develop and test an approach using AI for the analysis and assessment of transcribed consultations. This will provide an additional source of evidence about the characteristics of consultations and allow us to test insights from the literature and explore more refined hypotheses, about the impact of age and gender for example.

This PhD is a unique collaboration between an AI start-up delivering cutting edge technology, experienced AI researchers working in healthcare, and practising clinicians teaching communication skills to tomorrow's doctors. Applicants will be expected to contribute to teaching at the Institute of Health Informatics, with the commitment being equivalent to six months teaching over the lifetime of the PhD. This studentship provides a unique opportunity to conduct supervised research at a world leading institute and be a part of our research community. This studentship provides a starting stipend of £28,212 per annum and covers the cost of tuition fees based on the UK (Home) rate.

Applicants should have, or expect to receive, an upper second-class Bachelor's degree and a Master's degree (or equivalent work experience) in a relevant discipline or an overseas qualification of an equivalent standard.

This studentship covers the cost of tuition fees based on the UK (Home) rate. Non-UK students can apply but will have to personally fund the difference between the UK (Home) rate and the overseas rate where they are not eligible for UK fee status. Important: You will be asked about your likely fee status at the interview so we would advise you to contact the UCL Graduate Admissions Office for advice should you be unsure whether or not you meet the eligibility criteria for Home fee status.

As London's Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We particularly encourage applications from candidates underrepresented in UCL's workforce, including those from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled people, and - for Grade 9 and 10 roles - women.