AI exposure: Dermatologists
Diagnose and treat diseases relating to the skin, hair, and nails. May perform both medical and dermatological surgery functions.
Reading this score
computedAt 17.6% of weighted task load, Dermatologists sits at the 29th percentile, below the point where a job's centre of gravity has moved. 55.8% of what this role does is untouched, meaning current systems cannot produce that work at all, whatever the commercial incentive.
What holds the line here is verification cost. Across this occupation's 18 tasks it averages 2.83 out of 3, the highest of the five friction dimensions. In plain terms, checking the output costs more than producing it. Where an undetected error is expensive, dangerous or irreversible, the economics change. Someone has to verify the work, and verifying can cost as much as doing it. This is the friction most likely to fall as tools for checking improve.
The most exposed thing this job does is Record patients' health histories, at 53.3%. The least is Perform skin surgery to improve appearance, make early diagnoses, or control diseases such as..., at 0.0%. A gap of 53.3% between two parts of the same job is the reason this index publishes at task level. An occupation-wide number would have hidden both.
Within healthcare practitioner and technical occupations, this one is less exposed than the median of 18.5% across the group's 89 roles, with 52 scoring higher. Being in an exposed family does not make a particular job exposed, and the reverse holds too.
What would move this score. Of 18 tasks, 3 are currently banded exposed, 8 assisted and 7 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take a change in who is permitted to sign the work, which is a question for regulators rather than for engineers. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Where the score comes from
judgedEvery task is scored through the standardised work activities it maps to. These are this occupation’s averages on the six rubric dimensions. Capability is what AI can do; the other five are what stands in the way.
| Dimension | Mean | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | 1.78 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 1.06 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 1.83 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 2.72 | 0-3 |
| Context | 2.00 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 2.83 | 0-3 |
Task by task
18 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record patients' health histories. | 53.3% | 46.7% | 0.0% | 4.63 | exposed |
| Counsel patients on topics such as the need for annual dermatologic screenings, sun protection, skin cancer awareness, or skin and lymph node self-examinations. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.76 | exposed |
| Provide dermatologic consultation to other health professionals. | 35.0% | 40.0% | 25.0% | 4.30 | assisted |
| Read current literature, talk with colleagues, and participate in professional organizations or conferences to keep abreast of developments in dermatology. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 4.32 | exposed |
| Evaluate patients to determine eligibility for cosmetic procedures such as liposuction, laser resurfacing, or microdermabrasion. | 30.0% | 45.0% | 25.0% | 2.92 | assisted |
| Recommend diagnostic tests based on patients' histories and physical examination findings. | 20.0% | 30.0% | 50.0% | 4.62 | assisted |
| Conduct or order diagnostic tests such as chest radiographs (x-rays), microbiologic tests, or endocrinologic tests. | 20.0% | 30.0% | 50.0% | 4.35 | assisted |
| Conduct clinical or basic research. | 20.0% | 30.0% | 50.0% | 3.38 | assisted |
| Refer patients to other specialists, as needed. | 16.7% | 33.3% | 50.0% | 4.13 | assisted |
| Diagnose and treat pigmented lesions such as common acquired nevi, congenital nevi, dysplastic nevi, Spitz nevi, blue nevi, or melanoma. | 10.0% | 40.0% | 50.0% | 4.86 | assisted |
| Diagnose and treat skin conditions such as acne, dandruff, athlete's foot, moles, psoriasis, or skin cancer. | 10.0% | 40.0% | 50.0% | 4.73 | assisted |
| Prescribe hormonal agents or topical treatments such as contraceptives, spironolactone, antiandrogens, oral corticosteroids, retinoids, benzoyl peroxide, or antibiotics. | 8.3% | 16.7% | 75.0% | 4.35 | untouched |
| Instruct interns or residents in diagnosis and treatment of dermatological diseases. | 5.0% | 20.0% | 75.0% | 4.06 | untouched |
| Conduct complete skin examinations. | 3.3% | 21.7% | 75.0% | 4.90 | untouched |
| Provide therapies such as intralesional steroids, chemical peels, or comodo removal to treat age spots, sun damage, rough skin, discolored skin, or oily skin. | 3.3% | 21.7% | 75.0% | 3.98 | untouched |
| Provide dermabrasion or laser abrasion to treat atrophic scars, elevated scars, or other skin conditions. | 3.3% | 21.7% | 75.0% | 3.23 | untouched |
| Perform incisional biopsies to diagnose melanoma. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.83 | untouched |
| Perform skin surgery to improve appearance, make early diagnoses, or control diseases such as skin cancer. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.81 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
Occupations either side of this one
The four closest scores in the same occupational family, then the four closest anywhere in the index.
Read this carefully. Exposure is not displacement. A high score means current AI systems can produce this work, not that anyone will stop paying a person to do it. Adoption depends on economics, regulation and inertia that this index deliberately does not model. How the score is built.
What this means in practice
Most of this work is not reachable by current systems, so the immediate pressure is on the administrative edges of the role rather than its core: the scheduling, the reporting, the written records. That is where time is recovered.