The AI-Empowered Patient
A Practical Guide to Navigating Artificial Intelligence in Your Healthcare
Mike Runquist
MLS, CHC, CIPP/E, CIPM, AIP-HC
Available in Kindle and paperback editions.
About the Book
AI is already in your healthcare. The question is whether you are ready to use it safely, confidently, and on your own terms.
The AI-Empowered Patient gives you a practical framework for navigating artificial intelligence across every aspect of your healthcare life. Built around three core pillars — Prepare, Verify, and Protect — it translates complex technology and regulatory concepts into plain language and actionable steps you can take starting today.
Prepare — Arrive at every clinical encounter informed, organized, and ready to participate fully in your own care. Learn how to use AI to organize your symptoms, generate informed questions, and show up to every appointment as a genuine partner in your own healthcare.
Verify — Evaluate AI-generated health information critically before acting on it. Understand the difference between what is possible and what is probable, cross-reference AI output against authoritative sources, and use your clinical encounters to confirm what AI tells you.
Protect — Understand what happens to your health data, who has access to it, and how to safeguard it in an AI-enabled environment. Learn what HIPAA does and does not protect, evaluate the privacy practices of AI health tools, and make informed decisions about what you share and with whom.
Throughout the book, real-world examples illustrate how the framework applies in practice. Sample AI prompts give you a starting point for your own interactions with AI health tools. And each chapter closes with a clear action checklist — concrete steps you can take immediately to apply what you have learned.
Who this book is for.
Patients managing chronic conditions who use AI tools regularly to research their diagnosis and prepare for frequent clinical encounters.
Caregivers supporting a family member through a complex health journey who need practical tools for navigating an overwhelming amount of health information.
Health-engaged individuals who want to take a more active role in their own preventive care and use AI effectively and safely to do so.
Healthcare professionals who want to understand how their patients are using AI tools and want a resource they can recommend with confidence.
Healthcare organizations evaluating patient-facing AI literacy as part of their broader AI governance and patient engagement strategy.
Anyone who wants to use AI in their healthcare life safely, confidently, and on their own terms.
The AI-Empowered Patient Workbook
The Hands-On Companion
The AI-Empowered Patient Workbook bridges the gap between reading about patient empowerment and actually practicing it. Thirteen structured exercises, reflection prompts, checklists, and action planning tools guide you through the Prepare, Verify, and Protect framework in the context of your own health situation.
Available in paperback and as a downloadable PDF.
Ready to become an AI-empowered patient?
The framework is here. The tools are ready. Your health journey starts with showing up informed.