The Eve Appeal launched an artificial intelligence tool named Ask Eve Assist to handle a 1,141% rise in enquiries to its Ask Eve advice line over a two-year period.
The Closure of Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust
The dramatic spike in public queries followed the 2024 closure and subsequent liquidation of Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, a different gynaecological cancer charity that operated a similar advice service. Following its liquidation, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust transferred all of its content to the Eve Appeal, and its former website now directs visitors straight to Ask Eve. This sudden consolidation placed significant pressure on the two nurses who manage the Ask Eve line, including one staff member who works part-time.
Development and Deployment of Ask Eve Assist
To cope with the surge, the Eve Appeal introduced Ask Eve Assist to provide 24/7 immediate responses to routine questions regarding gynaecological health. Specialist nurses and individuals with personal experience of gynaecological cancers collaborated on the design of the platform. Unlike generic AI systems that draw from the entire internet, the tool relies exclusively on the charity’s validated health information. Helen Hyndman, Ask Eve lead nurse, stated that the technology has safely managed routine questions, allowing staff to dedicate more time to patients needing intensive support. The traditional nurse-led service remains active for users who prefer direct human contact, and cases deemed too complex for the AI tool are escalated to the nursing team.
Trial Results and General AI Concerns
During a trial involving 359 users, Ask Eve Assist successfully managed nearly 95% of enquiries without requiring nurse intervention, while 19 cases were referred to the nursing staff. The charity pursued an in-house AI solution after testing popular generic AI platforms and discovering that they missed critical “red flag” symptoms of gynaecological cancer. This launch coincides with separate research published by the Columbia University School of Nursing in New York, which indicated that most patients prefer waiting for medical advice from human health professionals over receiving immediate answers from artificial intelligence.
Ask Eve Assist Escalation Criteria
What criteria does Ask Eve Assist use to determine if a case requires nurse escalation?
Cases that exceed the scope of routine information or present complex symptoms are directly transferred to the human nursing team, as observed during a trial where 19 out of 359 user interactions required escalation.
How does the new AI tool differ from generic internet-based artificial intelligence platforms?
Ask Eve Assist is restricted to drawing information exclusively from the Eve Appeal’s validated health database, bypassing the broader internet to prevent the omission of critical red-flag gynaecological cancer symptoms found in tests of generic platforms.
What happened to the digital resources of Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust after its closure?
Following its liquidation in 2024, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust gifted all of its content to the Eve Appeal, and its defunct website now redirects individuals directly to the Ask Eve service.