AI in Healthcare: The Greater Risk of Inaction and the Need for Change
In the hushed corridors of hospitals, nestled within the labyrinth of wards and rooms, resides a chaotic dance of medical professionals overwhelmed by responsibility. Their workspaces, cluttered with countless reminders, notes, and to-dos, paint a vivid portrait of the immense pressure under which they function. It’s an everyday spectacle in today’s healthcare system — a testament to the dedication of countless professionals doing their best in a fractured system.
Amidst the daily grind of saving lives, a looming debate casts a shadow: the role and rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare. Detractors voice concerns about the potential dangers of AI integration, emphasizing the need for caution. While their apprehensions merit attention, it’s crucial to shift our gaze to the urgent crisis at hand: the current, broken healthcare system.
Every day, patients suffer due to medical errors, misdiagnoses, and treatment delays. It’s a dire consequence of a system buckling under its weight, and it’s here that AI presents a pressing remedy. Through advanced algorithms and machine learning, AI offers the potential to enhance diagnosis, streamline treatment plans, and ensure robust post-care monitoring.
Recently, I had the distinct honor of participating in the Future and Health Summit. As a panelist, I delved into the critical aspects of governing and managing generative AI solutions. The insights and discussions from the summit were illuminating, underscoring the complexities and potential of AI in reshaping healthcare. Stay tuned, as I’ll be sharing my learnings in a follow-up article, which will serve as part two of this series.
However, what truly underscores the importance of AI integration is the larger picture: the urgent need for change. As we strive to implement AI responsibly in healthcare, it’s paramount that we break free from entrenched patterns of resisting progress. Our crisis demands innovation, collaboration, and informed discourse, not a retreat into the comfort zones of the past.
This urgency was palpably evident at this week’s HLTH event with the launch of VALID.ai, a groundbreaking community initiative aimed at advancing generative AI in healthcare and research. VALID.ai is not just another organization; it’s a rallying call. As a member-led collective, it brings together health systems, health plans, nonprofit associations, and technology and research partners, both domestically and globally. By championing open innovation and fostering radical collaboration, this platform presents an invaluable opportunity to redefine the future of healthcare.
Ashish Atreja, CIO and Chief Digital Health Officer at UC Davis Health, aptly summarized the sentiment, stating,
“By embracing open innovation and radical collaboration, health care organizations of all sizes can lead the charge in creating value from Gen AI responsibly.”
He further emphasized the unprecedented chance we now possess to
“co-create the science of Gen AI with our diverse partners in a way that could fundamentally change how care and research will be delivered in the future.”
This is the crossroads where we stand today. The path forward demands a departure from past patterns where resistance to change was the default. We must refrain from using “risk” and compliance as shields to stymie progress. Instead, we should recognize the profound responsibility we bear. In the world of healthcare, where lives hang in the balance, our duty is not just to act, but to innovate, collaborate, and lead with an open heart and mind. The real risk lies not in the future we are yet to embrace but in the present we continue to endure. Let’s move forward with purpose and passion.
Dr. Salim Afshar CMIO of Reveal HealthTech
