Using AI Without Losing Clinical Judgment: A Guide for Behavioral Health Professionals

Session Description: This session examines the expanding role of artificial intelligence and large language models in behavioral health practice, with attention to both their potential benefits and their clinical and ethical limitations. As AI tools become more embedded in professional and consumer settings, behavioral health practitioners must understand how to evaluate their appropriate use while preserving clinical judgment, professional accountability, and client safety. This session will review key considerations including privacy, informed consent, bias, hallucinations, and human oversight, with emphasis on how these issues shape responsible implementation in clinical, supervisory, training, and administrative contexts. Special attention will be given to AI-enabled documentation and EHR-integrated tools, including clinical note drafting, patient summaries, and workflow support, with emphasis on human review, privacy, and organizational accountability. The presentation will also address the growing reality that clients may use AI chatbots for emotional support or guidance, and will explore how professionals can respond in ways that are informed, ethically grounded, and clinically sound.