Events, Artificial Intelligence

AI is best leveraged when it’s tied to outcomes

"If we just talk about AI without tying that to better access globally, lower costs, ... better outcomes for our patients at the end of the day — we're not leveraging this transformational technology in the right way," GE Healthcare's Karley Yoder said during a panel discussion at HIMSS.

Artificial intelligence remains a hot buzzword, both inside and outside the healthcare world. Numerous startups boast about how their solution leverages the power of AI to swiftly accomplish what were previously time-consuming tasks. And there always seems to be a fresh bit of news about how artificial intelligence is altering our everyday experiences, from banking to online shopping.

But overall, how can AI make its mark? And how can we be sure to separate the hype from the reality?

During a session at this year’s HIMSS conference in Orlando, one panelist weighed in. Karley Yoder, director of product management for AI analytics at GE Healthcare, turned to a non-healthcare example to illustrate her point. People aren’t excited about the driverless car simply because it utilizes AI, she said. Rather, the car is exciting because of the positive implications it could have on transportation, such as less traffic and more efficient commutes.

The same idea applies to healthcare. “If we just talk about AI without tying that to better access globally, lower costs, … better outcomes for our patients at the end of the day — we’re not leveraging this transformational technology in the right way,” Yoder said.

She elaborated on how GE Healthcare relies on artificial intelligence to move toward improved patient care. With AI, the company can use a patient’s data to make the right decision about their care pathway, apply the best treatments and monitor patients before they get sick. After gathering the needed data, GE Healthcare uses Amazon SageMaker, a machine learning service that enables data scientists to build, train and deploy ML models.

Of course, AI has untapped potential for certain areas of healthcare. In these realms, it could be harnessed to drive even better outcomes for patients, providers, payers and other stakeholders.

For instance, panelist Manu Tandon, CIO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said he’d like to see artificial intelligence help with data identification and de-identification.

Photo: chombosan, Getty Images

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