Health Buddy: An AI-Driven Chatbot for Enhancing Public Health and Disease Awareness in India

Abstract

The increasing demand for accessible and cost-effective healthcare services has accelerated the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI)-driven solutions, particularly medical chatbots, to provide preliminary health guidance and decision support. This paper presents the design and evaluation of a medical chatbot that integrates natural language processing (NLP), machine learning algorithms, and domain-specific knowledge bases to deliver symptom assessment, evidence-based health information, and recommendations for professional consultation. A hybrid approach combining rule-based medical ontologies with deep learning enhances both accuracy and interpretability. Usability studies, ethical implications, and privacy compliance are addressed to ensure trustworthiness and regulatory alignment. Experimental results demonstrate the chatbot’s potential to improve early triage, reduce reliance on unverified online content, and enhance patient engagement. This research contributes to scalable, reliable, and user-centered conversational agents in healthcare applications.