FHC #188: Why younger patients turn away from doctors & toward GenAI

Sep 16, 2025

The podcast dives into the growing generational divide in healthcare, focusing on why Gen Z and Millennials are shifting away from traditional doctors. Distrust and outdated communication methods drive these younger patients towards digital solutions. The discussion also explores how generative AI is changing the landscape, enabling patients to engage more deeply in their healthcare. With AI potentially triaging symptoms and aiding in chronic condition management, the future of patient care could look very different if physicians adapt to these changes.

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INSIGHT

Generational Shift Is Reshaping Medicine

Younger generations communicate and focus attention differently than older ones, creating a growing mismatch with how doctors practice today.
If clinicians don't adapt to these societal changes, they risk losing influence and harming patient outcomes.

ANECDOTE

Underdog Campaign Won With Digital Tactics

Robert Pearl cites New York mayoral campaign success to show modern tactics winning over traditional establishment methods.
The campaign used Instagram, short videos, and grassroots mobilization to capture younger voters' attention.

ANECDOTE

Cheap Drones Upended Traditional Military Power

He contrasts that with Ukraine, where cheap camera-mounted drones inflicted heavy damage on expensive military hardware.
Low-cost decentralized tech is reshaping outcomes faster than legacy heavy investments.

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In this Diving Deep episode of Fixing Healthcare, cohosts Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr explore two urgent shifts reshaping the patient-doctor relationship in American medicine.

First, they tackle a generational divide that’s growing wider by the year. Gen Z and Millennial patients (now 40% of healthcare consumers), are increasingly turning away from traditional medical providers. Distrust in institutions, a preference for shared decision-making and frustration with outdated communication methods are driving these younger patients to seek answers elsewhere.

Pearl outlines what physicians must do to bridge the gap. Listen more, collaborate often and meet younger patients where they are: digitally, flexibly and with empathy. If doctors don’t evolve, patients will look elsewhere.

And increasingly, “elsewhere” means artificial intelligence. That leads to the second half of the episode, where Pearl maps out a new reality: for the first time in history, patients can climb the ladder of medical expertise with help from GenAI. Large language models like ChatGPT and Claude are enabling patients to move beyond awareness and application into true analysis, synthesis and even innovation.

Pearl explores what this means for clinical care. Will patients one day use GenAI to monitor chronic conditions like diabetes or asthma on their own? Could AI triage symptoms, suggest follow-ups or even nudge lifestyle changes more effectively than a rushed primary care visit?

These questions are no longer theoretical. As Pearl warns, clinicians must either guide the change or risk being sidelined by it.

HELPFUL LINKS

3 Ways Doctors Can Win Back Gen Z, Millennial Patients (Forbes)
Will GPT-5, Claude, Gemini Break Doctors’ Monopoly On Medical Expertise? (Forbes)
Monthly Musings on American Healthcare (Robert Pearl’s newsletter)

* * *

Dr. Robert Pearl is the author of “ChatGPT, MD: How AI-Empowered Patients & Doctors Can Take Back Control of American Medicine.” All profits from the book go to Doctors Without Borders.

Fixing Healthcare is a co-production of Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr. Subscribe to the show via Apple, Spotify or wherever you find podcasts. Join the conversation or suggest a guest by following the show on Twitter and LinkedIn.

The post FHC #188: Why younger patients turn away from doctors & toward GenAI appeared first on Fixing Healthcare.