Healthcare
Healthcare and Social Care Jobs Among Least Likely to Be Replaced by AI, Study Finds
07 Oct 2026
Hamilton Group research suggests roles such as emergency medical technicians, paramedics, nurses and social workers could benefit from AI augmentation while retaining a strong need for human judgement, empathy and hands-on care.
7 October 2026 — Healthcare and social care occupations are among the professions least exposed to AI-driven automation, according to new research from Hamilton Group examining jobs where artificial intelligence may expand productivity without replacing workers.
The October 2026 study compared 60 professions with an estimated AI automation risk below 45%, cross-referencing job responsibilities with AI augmentation rates reported in the Anthropic Economic Index and analysing current employment and median wages.
Emergency medical technicians and paramedics ranked as the two occupations with the lowest estimated automation exposure in the study, both receiving a 0% automation-risk score. The analysis also found that healthcare and social-service roles account for eight of the ten occupations identified as having particularly low replacement risk.
Emergency medical technicians rank lowest for automation risk
Emergency medical technicians topped the ranking with an estimated 0% AI automation risk.
The occupation employed approximately 181,000 people in the US in 2025, with a median annual wage of around $44,000, according to the dataset used by Hamilton Group.
The study argues that the nature of emergency response makes full automation particularly difficult. EMTs must assess patients in unpredictable environments, perform physical interventions, make rapid decisions and communicate with people experiencing potentially life-threatening situations.
At the same time, Hamilton Group assigns the broader healthcare practitioner group an AI augmentation rate of 58.4%, suggesting there may still be substantial opportunities to use AI for supporting tasks.
Those could include administrative documentation and information processing rather than replacing care delivered directly at the scene.
Paramedics show the same low automation exposure
Paramedics also received a 0% automation-risk score.
Around 101,000 people were employed in the occupation in 2025, with a median wage of approximately $61,000.
Hamilton Group notes that AI could potentially assist paramedics with tasks such as completing reports after a shift, while the core responsibilities of assessing patients, delivering emergency care and responding to changing physical conditions remain heavily dependent on people.
Importantly, the study’s 58.4% augmentation figure applies to the wider healthcare occupational group rather than specifically to paramedics, meaning it should not be interpreted as a prediction that exactly 58.4% of an individual paramedic’s work will be transformed by AI.
Physicians combine low automation risk with higher pay
Physicians classified as “all other” ranked third, with an estimated automation risk of 4.5%.
The study records approximately 343,000 workers in this category and a median annual wage of $266,000, making it the highest-paying occupation among the top ten.
AI may increasingly support clinicians by analysing records, identifying patterns in large datasets or helping organise information before a decision is made.
However, Hamilton Group’s analysis suggests that diagnosis, judgement, accountability and direct interaction with patients continue to limit the scope for full automation.
This distinction between augmentation and replacement is particularly important in healthcare, where AI may become increasingly useful without removing the need for qualified practitioners.
Social workers remain strongly dependent on human interaction
Mental health and substance-abuse social workers ranked fourth, with an estimated automation risk of 4.5%, while child, family and school social workers followed with 6.7%.
Both occupations had a median wage of approximately $60,000 in the research.
Hamilton Group argues that these jobs remain difficult to automate because of the importance of trust, context, emotional understanding and human-to-human relationships.
The broader community and social-service occupational group was assigned an AI augmentation rate of 60%, suggesting technology could still assist with administrative or information-heavy tasks without replacing the interpersonal role at the centre of the profession.
Child, family and school social work was also one of the largest occupations in the ranking, employing approximately 393,000 people.
Nurses and psychologists also appear in the top ten
Registered nurses ranked sixth, with an estimated 6.9% automation risk and around 3.4 million workers employed in the US.
Clinical and counselling psychologists followed at 9.8%, while nurse practitioners and general internal medicine physicians were each estimated at 9.9%.
The only non-health or social-care occupation in the top ten was coaches and scouts, which recorded an estimated automation risk of 10.3%.
Top 10 occupations identified in the study
| Occupation | Estimated AI automation risk | Group-level AI augmentation rate | Employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emergency Medical Technicians | 0% | 58.4% | 181K | $44K |
| Paramedics | 0% | 58.4% | 101K | $61K |
| Physicians, All Other | 4.5% | 58.4% | 343K | $266K |
| Mental Health & Substance Abuse Social Workers | 4.5% | 60.0% | 133K | $60K |
| Child, Family & School Social Workers | 6.7% | 60.0% | 393K | $60K |
| Registered Nurses | 6.9% | 58.4% | 3.4M | $98K |
| Clinical & Counseling Psychologists | 9.8% | 59.5% | 76K | $101K |
| Nurse Practitioners | 9.9% | 58.4% | 323K | $132K |
| General Internal Medicine Physicians | 9.9% | 58.4% | 67K | $257K |
| Coaches and Scouts | 10.3% | 64.2% | 249K | $47K |
Why healthcare may be more resistant to replacement
A job analyst from Hamilton Group said the “human factor” remains central to many of the occupations identified in the study.
Their ability to establish connection, understand the problem, and extend empathy to another person is what AI is unable to do.
The findings point toward a future in which some health professions may experience significant technological change without becoming fully automated.
AI could reduce time spent on paperwork, assist with clinical information retrieval or support analysis, while decisions involving physical care, trust, accountability and empathy continue to depend on people.
The study also raises a wider workforce issue: several of the jobs considered resistant to automation are not among the highest paid, despite requiring significant responsibility and direct human interaction.
About Hamilton Group
Hamilton Group is an IT support and managed technology services provider. Its research examines technology adoption, workforce trends and the changing role of AI across business and employment.
