By Terence Mill, contributor, Forbes | June 11, 2019
Artificial intelligence (AI) is having a major impact on the health care industry. In fact, AI in health care is redefining the medical care field and all its functions.
It is playing a big role in health care data. When health care data uses AI, it provides new and improved analytics. AI analytics are of use in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of many diseases. AI in health care is helping to provide more targeted care for patients fighting medical diseases or issues.
AI in health care is even working on a 3D holographic representations of a patient’s anatomy. This is of use for patients who are not able to be present themselves for the doctor. This type of AI technology in health care records everything from the patient’s physiological data to their medical images. It allows for a much more accurate diagnosis.
The obvious benefit of AI in health care is accuracy. There is no risk of human error. This will allow for breaking down a patient’s medical need by joining it to analytic data for treatment options.
Types Of AI
There are different types of AI technologies that help patient outcomes when used in health care. However, most people don’t realize how much AI is currently in their health care. Below are the different types of AI functions in health care:
• Medical records with data management functions.
• Robotic repetitive tasks (e.g., analyzing results of X-rays, CT scans, etc.).
• AI now provides treatment designs (e.g., analyzing data in patient files, research, etc.) for individualized treatments.
• Medical consultations are something some AI apps provide. These digital consultations input your concerns and treatment options. They then provide a recommendation for the best treatment option.
• Molly is a digital nurse who helps patients report their condition. She also is an AI application that aims to support patients.
• The National Institute of Health (NIH) now operates an AI application that monitors a patient’s use of medication (i.e., it monitors if a patient is using or abusing their medication).
• There are many pharmaceutical companies using AI applications with their clinical trials. What used to take years, can now take months using AI programs. AI programs track the data results for medical advances.
• Genetics and genomics use AI for linking diseases to mutations and DNA information.
• If you have ever worn a Fitbit, you are using an AI application for health monitoring. These are wearable health trackers that track everything from heart rates to activity levels.
• The health care system is moving toward digitalization. AI can move through data, analyze treatment issues and report on workflow problems.
Artificial Intelligence Robot
Today, in the health care field there are AI robot prototypes performing health care tasks. AI allows humanoid robots to figure out what is being said. AI is allowing the humanoid robot to also respond.
This is allowing for the use of AI humanoid robots in various health care markets:
• Health care facilities using AI cognitive technology are using health data, which helps result in targeted, more personalized treatment.
• Health care clinicians are using Google’s DeepMind Health, which can assess and solve real-world health care problems. It is a type of AI technology that combines learning and neuroscience to create algorithms that mimic the human brain.
• Health care facilities use AI to identify and treat ill patients for the health care provider best suited.
Future of AI
The future of AI in health care has nowhere to go but up. We are an aging population, and many of our geriatric disorders will be using AI research. This AI research will help provide treatments this population needs. AI in health care will conduct ongoing research and analyze data. It will also assess testing results and administer diagnoses.
That’s not including the future of AI in pharmaceutical companies. AI will provide better research and testing for pharmaceutical companies. It will tweak drug discovery and fine-tune drug purposes. The future of AI will teach medical classes and provide health care training.
The future of AI will give simulated experiences for participants. It will have the ability to meet ongoing or new medical challenges by adjusting its data program.
It will also allow for training by anyone who wants health care classes no matter where they live in the world. It will not matter whether they live in Antartica or on the space station.
Exploring The Hard Questions
The digital universe now has a permanent new family member with AI. What we need to ask ourselves now are some relevant questions. Given that artificial intelligence in health care grows every day. Should we be exploring some hard questions about its use?
Should artificial intelligence’s use within the health care field have man-made limitations? How about HIPAA compliance? What are the ethical considerations? It is likely that these questions and others will need to be answered before there is industry-wide adoption.
Terence Mills, CEO of AI.io and Moonshot, is an AI pioneer and digital technology specialist.
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