AI’s Potential to Improve Healthcare in 2024

Artificial Intelligence is already transforming healthcare by making it more affordable and accessible. The technology is also relieving the pressure on healthcare staff.?

But how does it go beyond that in the coming years?

The image-processing capabilities of Artificial Intelligence are helping patients & healthcare professionals detect serious diseases in their early stages by precisely examining medical images. AI algorithms are helping radiologists find malignant tumors. In emergency rooms, some medical faculties are using this algorithm to spot embolisms and signs of stroke, which is important for minimizing the risk of brain damage.

AI is also used in healthcare to predict outcomes for surgery and the best path of treatment by examining the patient’s medical history & current condition. Surgeons are already currently using AI-powered surgical robots to conduct surgeries with very little invasiveness. This leads to quicker recovery times, fewer complications, and enhanced patient outcomes.?

AI is going above and beyond by revolutionising many aspects of healthcare such as delivery, diagnostics, and drug discovery.

A crucial area of my AI in healthcare is to understand atypical speech which is speech that is affected by a stroke or a disease that leads to motor speech disorder in the patient. Artificial intelligence can bridge this gap in communication by allowing the patient to interact with the doctor via healthcare chatbots. The medical bot then translates the speech for doctors, talking to them on your behalf in intelligent speech or even in other languages. Making healthcare chatbots understand atypical speech also enables developers to unlock new technologies, such as developing an automated speech therapy and monitoring system to help patients with speech disorders find their speech in the comfort of their houses, wherever they live.

Now let’s get updated on the news and trends of AI in the healthcare sector.?

Stanford Medicine recently conducted a study that showed an AI-based model in use at Stanford Hospital. This model is developed to predict patient decline and send notifications to both doctors and nurses. This has helped foster timely clinical interventions.

Saudi Arabia just announced its adoption of AI in the healthcare sector. According to a recent report from PwC, the projected impact of Artificial Intelligence in the Middle East by the year 2030 is $320 billion U.S. dollars, with an estimated $135.2 billion U.S. dollars attributed to Saudi Arabia.

Fortis Healthcare launches an AI-powered healthcare app called ‘Adayu’. Dr Samir Parikh, the Chief Psychiatrist and Chairperson of Fortis National Mental Health Program said that India's mental health burden is at USD 2-3 billion with about 1 in every 8 people suffering from a mental health disorder in some form. To tackle this, Adayu Mindfulness, a subsidiary of Fortis Healthcare Group, collaborated with the tech company United We Care and developed the 'Adayu' app which is poised to transform the healthcare landscape.

The new term AI therapy is doing rounds. Therapy medical chatbots have been deployed in the healthcare sector to support people dealing with depression, anxiety, & other mental health issues. When patients come to them with a given problem, these healthcare chatbots respond similarly to a real therapist might — they ask questions, propose coping mechanisms, and set milestones. Research also shows that they are improving the mental health of patients.?

The World Health Organization (WHO) has released guidelines on the ethics and governance of large multi-modal models (LMMs). The guidelines outline over 40 recommendations for consideration by governments, tech organizations, and healthcare solutions providers to ensure the appropriate use of large multi-model models to protect the health of citizens.?

In the healthcare sector, AI has the potential to improve everything from workflow automation to patient outcomes. 2024 is going to be a watershed year for artificial intelligence in healthcare.?