AI, & the future of Medicine

The practice of medicine is changing rapidly. New methods of machine learning coupled with huge advancements in computer processing power, & data from Clinical Research, AI-based systems are already improving the accuracy and efficiency of diagnosis and treatment across many offices.

AI has been a thing of interest since the 90's, but until recently we didn't quite have the capability to harness it's usefulness. When AI was introduced, not much information had been collected yet, & some experts suggested that someday it may replace physicians in some specializations, which sparked some push-back on it's development.

Now, we know that AI-based systems will augment physician treatment, but are unlikely to replace the traditional Doctor–patient relationship. We expect AI to have a prominent role in healthcare in the near future.

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So, why exactly do we think that AI will help the medical field? Isn’t there a chance for error?

AI is well-suited to handle repetitive work, managing large amounts of data, and can provide another layer of decision support to mitigate errors that humans might make. Like everything, there is a chance for error, but it can be greatly reduced when combining both AI and Clinician input.

What makes AI so promising?

There has been that estimates that AI has the potential to improve patient outcomes by 30% to 40% while also reducing treatment costs by up to 50%. & Unlike humans, AI never needs to sleep. For instance, AI could be used to observe the vital signs of patients receiving critical care and alert clinicians if certain risk factors increase. While medical devices like heart monitors can track vital signs, AI can collect the data from those devices and look for more complex conditions. There are already some AI based systems that are 75% accurate at detecting issues before they even present themselves to Doctors.

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Precision medicine & hyper-personalized healthcare could also become easier to support with AI assistance. Because AI models can learn and retain preferences, AI has the potential to provide customized real-time recommendations to patients around the clock. Rather than having to repeat information with a new person each time, a healthcare system could offer patients around-the-clock access to an AI-powered virtual assistant that could answer questions based on the patient's medical history, preferences and personal needs.

The possibilities are endless, and it is a very exciting time for medicine!

GMRI is currently participating in an AI-Based Depression study. To learn more: Sign up on our website, or give us a call!