GE Healthcare

Karley Yoder

For years, artificial intelligence was science fiction, but not only has it arrived in the healthcare space, it’s here to stay in a big way. So, how do we implement it into our everyday lives to improve patient care on a large scale? There are a few key turning points that highlight the fact that AI isn't about the technology—it's about the outcomes.

“We want to build the roads and bridges to allow innovation—from all sources—to quickly get to our customers”

On a global scale, AI adoption in healthcare has increased, including a shift toward more virtual care and telemedicine. These forms of technological underpinnings have the potential to transform healthcare delivery models in exciting and long-overdue ways. While I'm inspired by some of the technological trends—partially due to the stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic—I'm reminded even more of the importance of "technology for a purpose.” That is, technology that addresses the value propositions of efficiency and quality of patient care. As we emerge from COVID-19, I believe this level of attention will only continue to grow, bringing about a greater implementation of AI in the healthcare sector.

Endless Opportunities

AI is real. It’s not going anywhere. And it’s beginning to solve real healthcare problems across the spectrum. Recently, the focus of AI discussions in the healthcare sector has moved away from debating the validity of such technologies, and toward considering ways to successfully implement them and drive the best outcomes. The opportunities for AI implementation seem endless, including:

Triage—helping identify and prioritize critical patients

Decision support—guiding complex clinical decisions

Assisted reading—improving disease identification, quantification, and tracking

Structured reporting—assisting with writing radiology, cardiology, and other reports

With AI, we can complete these tasks uniformly, across departments and institutions, as quickly as possible. This support then leaves clinicians to do what only they can do, make a human connection in providing quality care.

A Digital Wave Is Coming

Recent data has shown more healthcare institutions are beginning to adopt AI into their practices. For example, a 2019 study by MIT Tech Review Insights revealed that 80% of healthcare leaders already see growth or savings by using AI. Another study reported $4 billion in funding allocated to AI development in 2019, including 350 startups working on healthcare AI apps (Healthcare Dive, Jan 2019).

There are some extremely powerful use cases and applications coming to market right now that have the potential to drive significant outcomes in the healthcare industry. But, with such a tidal wave of innovative options coming, how will providers know who to choose, or who to work with? Today’s acquisition approach won’t work with hundreds of apps—it would require months of time and too many labor-hours. It begs the question: How can we rethink this process, especially when catching the coming tidal wave or dealing with hundreds of applications to drive best possible outcomes and workflow?

Roads and Bridges

I believe we need to shift to an ecosystem mindset—a simpler way—establishing a process where one can easily:

Find the apps they’re interested in

Try those apps

Buy the apps they like

This needs to be the same type of ecommerce engagement we’re used to in our lives, everywhere else outside of healthcare. For this to happen, a sophisticated infrastructure is needed, and a lot of work will be required to provide a simple, efficient system—a way to acquire healthcare applications that scale and evolve with you. At GE Healthcare, we believe this is the way forward in healthcare. Providing a high-quality, repeatable experience—AI you can continue to engage, with expansive options across applications.

We also believe there’s no single company that’s going to tackle the types of problems that need to be solved in healthcare alone. That’s why we’re interested in building what we call “roads and bridges” that allow us to partner well and bring providers the best innovation that’s available. We want to see seamless integration of AI into your workflow. We want to build the roads and bridges to allow innovation—from all sources—to quickly get to our customers. We’re excited to form partnerships to harness and leverage the best innovation wherever it’s created.

Looking Ahead

Throughout the pandemic, our goal—as well as what we have the opportunity to contribute every day—has been underscored. COVID-19 confirmed some of the things we’ve always suspected. The volume and quality pressures that existed within our healthcare system, and the needs for efficiency, were exasperated and intensified. With such high-demand challenges, we also learned AI now plays a significant role in meeting those needs. I believe this demand will persist even after COVID-19 is phased out, which is why we’re so excited to build partnerships that both impact and improve the quality of provider resources. Because, in the end, while new technology is exciting, AI in healthcare is only as good as the care it helps clinicians provide.