New study examines ChatGPT-generated consent forms

Dental Tribune International

Wed. 9 July 2025

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LONDON, Canada: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in dentistry is rapidly expanding, offering new possibilities in diagnostics, treatment planning and patient communication. However, its integration into dental education—particularly in areas requiring ethical and legal sensitivity, such as informed consent—remains underexplored. A recent study addressed this gap by introducing an educational exercise in which third-year dental students compared ChatGPT-generated consent forms with professionally validated examples. The findings underscored the value of guided and critical engagement with AI tools to prepare students for their responsible and effective use in clinical practice.

In a recent study, Dr Les Kalman introduced ChatGPT as part of the digital dentistry workflow in his course on diagnosis and treatment planning, allowing students to engage with artificial intelligence in a structured, critical way. (Image: Dr Les Kalman)

Speaking to Dental Tribune International, lead author Dr Les Kalman, an assistant professor of restorative dentistry in the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University in London in Canada, explained that the study was designed to give students a hands-on understanding of ChatGPT and AI in dentistry. “As the course director for Diagnosis and Treatment Planning for third-year students, I have the opportunity to introduce a variety of digital dentistry workflows,” he said. “I felt that ChatGPT deserved to be included as one of those workflows.”

He continued: “It became clear that students were already using AI in their studies, so rather than discouraging its use, I decided to take a different approach and asked them to incorporate it into their case-based projects. This allowed them to experiment with AI and gain a better understanding of its limitations—particularly when it comes to patient-specific and procedure-specific informed consent.”

In the study, students evaluated the AI-generated forms on content accuracy and readability and provided qualitative feedback. They rated ChatGPT’s forms as moderately effective, giving them an average score of 1.75 out of 3. Common shortcomings included vague or insufficient details about risks, benefits and treatment alternatives, as well as a lack of personalisation. The reading level of the forms was also found to be too advanced for the average Canadian adult.

Despite these limitations, students recognised that ChatGPT could still be a useful tool for drafting initial consent documents, which clinicians could then adapt. According to the researchers, the exercise increased students’ awareness of AI’s potential and limitations, underscoring the value of supervised learning in preparing dental professionals for future AI integration.

“As ChatGPT and other forms of AI continue to shape the field of dentistry, it’s important that both students and clinicians understand its strengths and weaknesses,” Dr Kalman noted and added that he is planning to continue exploring AI in dental education and is interested in collaborating with others who share this interest.

Since the study used an older version of ChatGPT, released in January 2024, future studies should explore more advanced models, such as GPT-4, and give structured prompts for the creation of consent forms to improve outcomes.

The study, titled “ChatGPT in dental education: Enhancing student proficiency in informed consent”, was published online on 22 January 2025 in Medical Science Educator.