Attitudes of Primary Healthcare Workers Toward Artificial Intelligence: A Cross-Sectional Study in Iraq

Objective: This study aimed to assess the attitudes of primary healthcare center (PHC) workers toward artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare and explore the associations between their attitudes and socio-demographic variables.

Methods and Materials: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted from October 9, 2024, to March 1, 2025, involving 451 healthcare workers across 12 primary healthcare centers in Baghdad. A non-probability purposive sampling method was used. Participants included physicians, nurses, pharmacists, laboratory assistants, technicians, and administrators. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire covering demographic characteristics and a Likert scale measuring attitudes toward AI. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 26, applying descriptive statistics and Spearman's correlation.

Findings: The majority of participants were aged 28–40 years, with 47.9% holding a bachelor’s degree. Most had 6–10 years of work experience, and 96.7% had not received any AI-related training. Over half (54.33%) of participants reported positive attitudes toward AI. Respondents agreed AI could reduce medical errors (58.3%) and deliver real-time data (54.8%), but only 22.4% agreed that AI outperforms human diagnostic ability. Significant positive correlations were found between attitude scores and participants’ age (r = 0.208, p < 0.01), education level (r = 0.396, p < 0.05), and years of experience (r = 0.136, p = 0.01).

Conclusion: While more than half of PHC workers demonstrated positive attitudes toward AI, the lack of formal AI training remains a concern. Demographic factors such as age, education, and experience significantly influenced attitudes. Future efforts should focus on implementing targeted AI education and training initiatives within Iraq's healthcare system.