by Toby Patrick
AI’s capabilities are evolving at an alarming rate, and nearly every industry has been impacted by artificial intelligence (AI) in recent years. Healthcare is no different as AI is seen more and more when it comes to improving the lives of both patients and practitioners.
As we move into a new era of AI, we can expect to see the technology have an impact on every area of healthcare, from admin to diagnosis and surgery. In fact, the wheels are already in motion for this with more and more AI-shaped startups harnessing the power of AI and applying it to the healthcare sector.
A Brief History of AI in Healthcare Today
Despite all the talk being about AI recently, the technology is far from a new phenomenon. As a matter of fact, AI can be traced as far back as the 1940s when machines used in WWII were decoded with the help of AI. It wasn’t until 1955 that the term artificial intelligence was actually coined.
During the 70s, AI became more prominent in healthcare. MYCIN, which was used in the treatment of blood infections, was developed in 1972 at Stanford University. Today, AI is used in some capacity by just about every health organisation in the world.
It’s likely that health professionals and patients don’t even realise the presence of AI. Tasks such as transcribing medical documents, assisting with billing, and scheduling appointment reminders to enhance patient experience all use AI in this day and age.
More complex uses of AI include accelerating the discovery of new drugs and analysing medical images to speed up the treatment of patients.
Three Startups Advancing Healthcare With AI
Juniver
Juniver helps tackle binge eating and eating disorders through AI-shaped interventions that can predict cravings and urges to eat. The Juniver website references that 92% of users felt urges decrease when using the platform.
Abridge
Abridge uses AI to offer a groundbreaking platform that can drastically reduce the time that physicians spend on admin tasks, freeing them up to spend more time treating patients. The platform works by automatically recording conversations between health professionals and patients, transcribing and updating the health records of patients.
C The Signs
C The Signs is a cancer prediction platform that aims to catch cancer at its earliest stage. The platform relies on AI and data to accurately identify cancer and, according to research, has improved cancer detection by 8%.
The Future of AI in Healthcare
The healthcare industry is currently undergoing somewhat of an AI-shaped shift. As already mentioned, admin tasks such as billing and appointment scheduling are already heavily reliant on AI. However, going forward we can expect to see the technology used in the actual diagnosis and treatment of patients.
Diagnostic Advances
The first step of involving AI with diagnosis lies in training medical equipment. Devices such as smart stethoscopes use data to accurately pass information onto doctors. The more data is loaded onto these devices from past patients, the more accurately the equipment will be able to not only diagnose patients but also answer questions on the treatment required.
For example, in the future, a stethoscope may be able to tell a trained professional that a patient is showing early signs of heart failure, or an X-ray may be able to immediately identify cancerous cells which means treatment can begin earlier.
Triage Predictions
Following on from the above point, if AI can be used to identify the severity of conditions, it can also advise on the level of care they need which could help reduce strain on healthcare systems. For instance, artificial intelligence could advise on which patients need to be taken to a hospital or A&E which should help organisations to better manage the flow of patients.
Surgical Decision-Making
The involvement of AI in diagnosing patients could have great benefits for surgeons in helping them determine what kind of treatment a patient requires. A plastic surgeon may no longer be required to make decisions on treatment themselves, instead relying on AI algorithms to determine what kind of plastic surgery they need.
Final Thoughts
The rate at which the healthcare industry adopts AI is heavily dependent on tech startups. AI’s role is starting to progress from being used in admin to more clinical functions. The end goal of startups and organizations using AI in healthcare should be to enhance the treatment given to patients, improve accuracy within healthcare and reduce the burden that is currently being put on healthcare systems.
Toby Patrick is a medical graduate from the UK. He enjoys combining his passion for creative writing with his vocation which is the medical industry. His writing often covers the past, present and future of all things health related.
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