TIME: Artificial intelligence and the mental health crisis
UC expert comments on how AI could impact the mental health system
Five years from now, the U.S.’ already overburdened mental health system may be short as many as 15,600 psychiatrists as the growth in demand for their services outpaces supply, according to a 2017 report from the National Council for Behavioral Health. But some proponents say that, by then, an unlikely tool—artificial intelligence—may be ready to help mental health practitioners mitigate the impact of the deficit.
Speech and language have emerged as two of the clearest applications for AI in psychiatry, says Dr. Henry Nasrallah, a psychiatrist at the University of Cincinnati who has written about AI’s place in the field. Speech and mental health are closely linked, he explains. Talking in a monotone can be a sign of depression; fast speech can point to mania; and disjointed word choice can be connected to schizophrenia. When these traits are pronounced enough, a human clinician might pick up on them—but AI algorithms, Nasrallah says, could be trained to flag signals and patterns too subtle for humans to detect.
Related Stories
UC achieves first-in-world remission of aggressive pituitary tumor with novel immunotherapy
May 13, 2026
Researchers at the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute’s Brain Tumor Center have been confirmed as the first in the world to achieve complete remission of a rare pituitary cancer using a novel immunotherapy treatment. The findings were published in Surgical Neurology International and recently featured in The Cancer Letter.
UC Blue Ash announces 2026 outstanding alumni award winner
May 11, 2026
Mark Brueggeman has enjoyed a long and successful business career that includes launching his own petrochemical distribution company that has clients around the world and grosses more than $150 million per year.
Lonely Jupiter-like planet 900 light years away tells us more about gas giants
May 8, 2026
UC astrophysicist Paul Smith is part of an international team that is studying five distant gas giants — Jupiter-like exoplanets light years away that could shed light on the formation of our own solar system.