Medical assistants

25.4%

ADI · 268th of 433 · 95% interval 12.8–40.4

An AI agent can at least partly carry out 25.4% of the task time of medical assistants, and finish 0.0% alone. The barrier that holds most of the rest back is access to the systems the work runs on.

ADI · partial or full25.4%

268th of 433 · interval 12.8–40.4

ADI3 · full delegation0.0%

201st of 433 · interval 0.0–0.0

ADIs · share of time24.0%

281st of 433 · interval 17.4–32.2

Evidence40

task statements rated by two models and weighted by importance and frequency. World employment: 3.8 million.

Task weight by level

How the tasks rate

52%

22%

25%

L0No meaningful role · 52.4%L1Augmentation · 22.3%L2Partial delegation · 25.4%L3Full delegation · 0.0%

Barriers

What stops the agent

Physical presence

78%

Accountability

44%

Trust and care

66%

Access to systems

65%

Share of task weight flagged by each barrier; a task can carry several.

40 task statements, heaviest first

Task statement (O*NET occupation)			Sonnet · Haiku			Barriers
Take and document patients' medical histories.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.7%	L2	L2L2	52%	15 min	Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Conduct tonometry or tonography tests to measure intraocular pressure.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.7%	L0	L0L0	6%	9 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems
Measure visual acuity, including near, distance, pinhole, or dynamic visual acuity, using appropriate tests.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.7%	L0	L1L0	9%	9 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Operate ophthalmic equipment, such as autorefractors, phoropters, tomographs, or retinoscopes.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.6%	L0	L0L0	4%	15 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems
Measure and record lens power, using lensometers.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.6%	L0	L1L0	10%	5 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Administer topical ophthalmic or oral medications.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.5%	L0	L0L1	10%	8 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Prepare treatment rooms for patient examinations, keeping the rooms neat and clean.Medical Assistants	3.1%	L0	L0L0	4%	11 min	Physical presence, Access to systems
Explain treatment procedures, medications, diets, or physicians' instructions to patients.Medical Assistants	3.1%	L2	L2L2	45%	14 min	Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Record patients' medical history, vital statistics, or information such as test results in medical records.Medical Assistants	3.1%	L2	L2L2	60%	15 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Interview patients to obtain medical information and measure their vital signs, weight, and height.Medical Assistants	3.1%	L1	L1L2	32%	15 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems
Show patients to examination rooms and prepare them for the physician.Medical Assistants	3.0%	L0	L0L1	10%	10 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems
Measure corneal curvature with keratometers or ophthalmometers to aid in the diagnosis of conditions, such as astigmatism.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	3.0%	L0	L0L1	6%	5 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Take anatomical or functional ocular measurements of the eye or surrounding tissue, such as axial length measurements.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.9%	L0	L0L1	8%	14 min	Physical presence, Trust and care
Perform general office duties, such as answering telephones, taking dictation, or completing insurance forms.Medical Assistants	2.9%	L2	L2L2	60%	22 min	Accountability, Access to systems
Greet and log in patients arriving at office or clinic.Medical Assistants	2.9%	L1	L1L2	32%	4 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems

Show the other 25 tasks

Task statement (O*NET occupation)			Sonnet · Haiku			Barriers
Conduct ocular motility tests to measure function of eye muscles.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.9%	L0	L0L1	8%	15 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Authorize drug refills and provide prescription information to pharmacies.Medical Assistants	2.8%	L2	L2L2	58%	10 min	Accountability, Access to systems
Conduct visual field tests to measure field of vision.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.8%	L1	L1L1	15%	18 min	Physical presence, Trust and care, Access to systems
Clean and sterilize instruments and dispose of contaminated supplies.Medical Assistants	2.7%	L0	L0L1	6%	38 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Help physicians examine and treat patients, handing them instruments or materials or performing such tasks as giving injections or removing sutures.Medical Assistants	2.5%	L0	L0L0	6%	22 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Schedule appointments for patients.Medical Assistants	2.5%	L2	L2L3	78%	9 min	Access to systems
Perform routine laboratory tests and sample analyses.Medical Assistants	2.5%	L1	L1L2	22%	30 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Prepare and administer medications as directed by a physician.Medical Assistants	2.4%	L1	L1L1	18%	12 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Collect blood, tissue, or other laboratory specimens, log the specimens, and prepare them for testing.Medical Assistants	2.3%	L1	L1L2	25%	18 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Maintain ophthalmic instruments or equipment.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.3%	L1	L1L1	15%	38 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Clean or sterilize ophthalmic or surgical instruments.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.2%	L0	L0L1	6%	28 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Assess refractive conditions of eyes, using retinoscopes.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.2%	L0	L0L0	4%	12 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care
Assist physicians in performing ophthalmic procedures, including surgery.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	2.1%	L0	L0L0	5%	1.0 h	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Contact medical facilities or departments to schedule patients for tests or admission.Medical Assistants	2.1%	L2	L2L2	62%	18 min	Access to systems
Inventory and order medical, lab, or office supplies or equipment.Medical Assistants	1.9%	L2	L2L2	58%	1.1 h	Physical presence, Access to systems
Assist patients to insert or remove contact lenses.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	1.8%	L0	L0L0	5%	18 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care
Keep financial records or perform other bookkeeping duties, such as handling credit or collections or mailing monthly statements to patients.Medical Assistants · supplemental task	1.8%	L2	L2L2	68%	1.3 h	Accountability, Access to systems
Operate x-ray, electrocardiogram (EKG), or other equipment to administer routine diagnostic tests.Medical Assistants	1.8%	L0	L0L0	5%	18 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Change dressings on wounds.Medical Assistants	1.7%	L0	L0L0	4%	15 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care
Set up medical laboratory equipment.Medical Assistants	1.7%	L0	L0L1	12%	1.3 h	Physical presence, Accountability, Access to systems
Instruct patients in the care and use of contact lenses.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	1.7%	L1	L1L2	35%	20 min	Physical presence, Trust and care
Conduct binocular disparity tests to assess depth perception.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	1.6%	L1	L1L1	12%	12 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Call patients to inquire about their post-operative status or recovery.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians	1.4%	L2	L2L2	68%	10 min	Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Assist patients to select eyewear.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians · supplemental task	0.9%	L1	L1L2	28%	20 min	Physical presence, Accountability, Trust and care, Access to systems
Adjust or make minor repairs to spectacles or eyeglasses.Ophthalmic Medical Technicians · supplemental task	0.7%	L0	L0L1	6%	10 min	Physical presence, Trust and care

Level: consensus of the two models (the lower level when they disagree). Share: part of the task’s working time an agent could take over. Human time: minutes a competent person needs for one instance, as estimated by the models.

Against other measures

Exposure is not delegation

Measure	Value	Pct
ADI (this index)	25.4%	38
Eloundou et al. (2024), GPT exposure β	0.372	56
Felten et al. (2021), AI occupational exposure	0.114	54
Webb (2020), AI patent exposure	34	25
Eisfeldt et al. (2026), generative AI exposure	0.088	35
Anthropic Economic Index, observed use	0.024	51

Earlier indices measure whether AI can touch a task; ADI measures how much of it an agent can carry out from a goal. – : the source does not cover this occupation.

Same sub-major group (32)

Neighbouring occupations

Occupation	ADI	%
Medical records and health information technicians 3252		97.9
Community health workers 3253		50.4
Midwifery associate professionals 3222		47.2
Traditional and complementary medicine associate professionals 3230		47.2
Pharmaceutical technicians and assistants 3213		45.3
Environmental and occupational health inspectors and associates 3257		38.2
Dispensing opticians 3254		35.3
Health associate professionals not elsewhere classified 3259		31.1
Medical imaging and therapeutic equipment technicians 3211		30.0
Physiotherapy technicians and assistants 3255		29.1
Medical and pathology laboratory technicians 3212		26.5
Veterinary technicians and assistants 3240		21.9

Dashed line: medical assistants (25.4%).

Cite this record

Text

Espinal Maya, Cristian, and Santiago Jiménez Londoño. 2026. ADI v2026.1: Agent Delegability Index data, code and MCP server. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23552918. Record: Medical assistants (ISCO-08 3256), https://balamlabs.org/adi/occupations/3256

BibTeX

@misc{espinal2026adidata,
  title     = {{ADI} v2026.1: Agent Delegability Index data, code and {MCP} server},
  author    = {Espinal Maya, Cristian and Jim{\'e}nez Londo{\~n}o, Santiago},
  year      = {2026},
  publisher = {Zenodo},
  version   = {v2026.1},
  doi       = {10.5281/zenodo.23552918},
  url       = {https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.23552918},
  note      = {Record: Medical assistants (ISCO-08 3256)}
}

Machine-readable

The same record as static JSON, with its citation: /adi/v2026.1/isco/3256.json.

Compare with another occupation How it is measured