Bad Medicine: AI’s Deadly Advice with Dr. Ross Albert

That Tech Pod

In this episode of That Tech Pod, Laura and Kevin talk with Kevin's brother, Dr. Ross Albert, Medical Director of Hartford HealthCare at Home Hospice and Palliative Care, about one of the most unsettling trends in the digital age: health misinformation driven by AI. The conversation kicks off with a real case of a man hospitalized after following ChatGPT’s bad advice and spirals into the broader question of why people are so quick to trust AI over actual doctors.

Ross shares what it’s like when patients bring AI-generated “facts” into the exam room, how often he has to correct them, and what happens when politics, ideology, and misinformation collide with medicine. We get into the risks of fake medical citations, the line between bad advice and malpractice, and whether AI companies should be required to include stronger safeguards for health-related content. From hallucinations caused by bromide poisoning to the daily challenges doctors face correcting digital myths, this episode looks at what happens when artificial intelligence meets human vulnerability, and why it’s more important than ever to check your sources before taking medical advice from a chatbot.

Dr. Ross Albert, MD PhD is the Medical Director of the Hartford HealthCare at Home Hospice and Palliative Care teams. Over the last 15 years, he has practiced in primary care, hospital medicine, and palliative care roles across Connecticut. He holds board certifications in Family Medicine, Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Ross holds faculty positions with the UConn Internal Medicine and Quinnipiac Family Medicine residency programs. He has published numerous articles focused on evidence-based medical care for patients across the spectrum of disease.

Note: this episode is for informational purposes only. We talk about how medical misinformation spreads and what we can learn from it, but nothing you hear should be taken as medical advice. If you have questions about your health, talk to a doctor or another qualified healthcare professional. Also the views expressed by our guests are their own.