Author: Bhusana Gogoi
Introduction : How AI is transforming the healthcare system is very interesting and it is amazing what AI can perform when integrated with healthcare system by by revolutionizing the way care is delivered , research is conducted and administrative tasks are handled . AI can process vast amount of data , automate task and provide insights , thus can bring significant benefits to the healthcare system .
The question is will AI replace the doctors or mainly augment the task performed by doctors ?
Following are the areas of healthcare system where AI likely to contribute significantly:
Disease Prediction and AI- AI can potentially help in predicting the risk of developing some chronic diseases before symptoms appear. Diseases like Diabetes , some heart disease , cancers , some neurological illness like Dementia and risk of developing these disease in vulnerable people can be detected With help of AI powered disease detection system. This system can analyze patients health records ,genetic data , medical images and lifestyle tracking to predict future health risks . Thus this AI based disease prediction system using machine learning algorithm can identify high risk patients at very early stage , assist doctors in early intervention and prvenion of potential health risk of patients .
AI application in medical imaging –Application of AI in the field of medical imaging has profound impact in the medical diagnosis. Integration of AI significantly improved the accuracy and efficiency of medical image analysis like x ray , CT scan , MRI ,ultrasound etc.AI in medical images uses advanced computer algorithm to assist doctors to analyze scan with more accuracy , precision in less time than before. Thus AI can spot what human may miss helping in early detection of disease. And also doctors can handle more patients data saving time and money in healthcare industry.
AI and Personalised medicine- With the help of AI doctors now a days can tailor treatment to individual patient for some rare illness like cancer. By analyzing vast and complex datasets of patients including patients electronic health records , genetic sequences and medical imaging AI assists doctors choosing right treatment for the right person at right time. The advantage is better recovery rate with less side effects with the AI assisted precision treatment of patients . Thus personalized treatment has been transformed with AI.
AI and drug discovery – AI can make drug discovery faster and smarter by helping some most difficult steps in drug discovery. AI integrated drug discovery tools accelerates drug discovery by improving target identification, generating new compounds and predicting safety. AI can analyze large bio medical datasets, thus helping in Pharmaceutical research to identify a potential drug, drug effectiveness and side effects. These all speed up new drug development process, changing how scientist develop new medicine, and brings new hope in disease treatment.
Administrative and operational task- There are massive advantages of administrative and operational AI. Maximum benefit of Ai can be achieved in this area of healthcare system. Medical coding , appointment scheduling, medical insurance , claiming , doctors documentations , hospital supply chain all these tasks can be augmented by AI integrated systems , helping in saving time for health care professionals . this reducing cost , helping in resource allocation with improved efficacy.
Laboratory diagnosis- Just like medical imaging, AI can analyze laboratory test reports with more accuracy and with greater speed . thus can provide faster result of different laboratory tests for better and early patient care .
Public health , Research and medical education with AI- AI can potentially effect high productivity in these areas by accelerating analysis and content production.
Apart from above mentioned areas Ai can play great role in tele medicine and remote monitoring of patients, AI assisted robotic surgeries , clinical decision support system and risk alerts .
SO WHAT ARE BENEFITS AND ADVANTAG :
From the above discussion briefly summarizing the benefits of AI in healthcare
1 . Faster and more accurate disease diagnosis .
2 Early detection of disease
3 Personalized and targeted treatment for some chronic disease
4 Increased efficiency with reduced cost
Greater access to healthcare
Saving time and proper utilization of
More efficient research work .
Limitations / Drawbacks/ Disadvantages:
While AI can afford us many new opportunities , the technology also has many potential drawbacks that raises concerns among practitioner and patients.
1 . Data privacy and security – AI system depends on massive datasets including sensitive confidential personal health information, so the risk of data misuse, unauthorized access is very much possible.
2 . Bias in AI Algorithm- Bias in AI driven Healthcare can lead to misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment. This may happen due to incorrect data of patient’s medical history or errors in AI Algorithm and modal design. Errors in system may lead to false negative results may miss the disease or false positive causing anxiety.
- Data quality – there is need for high quality and dense data in AI system . For reliable performance of AI system data should be clean , error free with crucial information to identify the correct pattern
- Risk of over reliance –It may happen as the AI system appears confident and sophisticated. And doctors may become dependable on it .
5 . Unexpected mistakes– AI System may contribute to errors even with advanced data and algoritm.
What AI can’t replace :’
Compassion – The human touch that builds trust and comfort
Ethics – The moral judgements to do what is right not just what is possible. The use of AI raises ethical question such as the degree to which machine should be involved in life and death decisions.
Responsibilities – THE accountability to put patient always first . When AI system make mistakes it fails to take the accountability.
Conclusion: From the above discussion it is evident that Ai will assist doctors in performing various tasks, can reshape workflow. AI can make profound changes in highly digital and repeatable work like documentation , draft reporting, data summarization , image screening etc . Substantial benefits can be achieved with AI in decision support , monitoring , research, care co ordination if used safely . Finally AI can support doctors for faster , smarter and more personalized healthcare .
