Mohit Sood, Regional Managing Principal, ZS explains how GenAI is enhancing overall healthcare outcomes
Generative AI (GenAI) is assuming an increasingly pivotal role within the healthcare sector, transforming numerous aspects of the industry. It overcomes some of the previous hurdles to AI adoption in healthcare by requiring less data, is more adaptable and can interface better with clinical staff.
Generative AI is estimated to yield an economic value of USD2.6 to USD4.4 trillion globally – as per NASSCOM’s recent study Harnessing the power of Generative AI. Built on technologies like Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) and Reinforcement Learning (RL), it allows for the creation of synthetic data that closely mirrors real-world data, a critical advantage in a field where data is often sensitive. Technology service providers can accelerate delivery by 20-35 per cent leveraging GenAI for diverse content forms, accessing and analysing data with advanced algorithms.
How GenAI is enhancing overall healthcare outcomes
Early diagnosis: GenAI is aiding in the early diagnosis of critical illnesses like cancer and cardiac conditions. By identifying potential health issues at their earliest stages, GenAI empowers healthcare providers to intervene and provide care when it is most likely to be effective.
Clinical trial optimisation: The high costs and failure rates associated with clinical trials are significant challenges in drug development. GenAI’s capabilities allow for the optimisation of trial mechanisms, reducing costs and improving overall delivery. For instance, GenAI identified a potential drug candidate for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) treatment in just 21 days, a process that would usually take years with conventional methods.
Infectious disease prevention: In the context of pandemic threats, such as the emergence of novel viruses like COVID-19, GenAI’s adaptability proves instrumental in proactive health risk mitigation. It assists in tracking disease spread, predicting its trajectory and empowering public health officials to make informed decisions regarding interventions like social distancing measures, vaccination campaigns and quarantine strategies.
Novel drug discovery: GenAI, equipped with models like GANs and Variational Autoencoders (VAEs), can predict molecular properties, generate novel chemical structures and optimize existing compounds to enhance efficacy and reduce side effects.
Administrative AI: GenAI is streamlining administrative tasks in healthcare by automating clinical documentation. Its content generation and analytics capabilities are enhancing workflow management, delivering results faster and improving overall efficiency.
Patient triage: GenAI aids in patient triage by addressing the challenge of limited awareness and accessibility to healthcare information. It supports patients through diagnostics and treatment decisions by providing timely and relevant information.
Transformative medical research: Medical researchers now have unprecedented access to vast datasets, allowing them to uncover patterns and correlations that were previously inaccessible. The synthesis of data using GenAI is transforming medical research as we know it today. It enables deeper insights into patient responses and behaviors, revolutionising the understanding of symptoms, medical history, drug responses and more.
Seizing the GenAI advantage in healthcare
GenAI’s adoption in the healthcare industry has been faster than one could imagine. As we increasingly delve into its immense power, we are witnessing the unfolding of a new era in healthcare innovation. Its impact is not only substantial but also rapidly accelerating, touching every facet of the healthcare industry. It unifies systems, connects stakeholders and elevates patient outcomes.
As GenAI continues to evolve and integrate seamlessly into healthcare practices, we can expect even more groundbreaking advancements on the horizon. The crux lies not in whether GenAI will influence the healthcare industry, but in whether healthcare leaders will capitalise on the chance to invest early, solidifying it as a strategic competitive advantage, or find themselves scrambling later to catch up when the window of opportunity has closed. For visionary leaders who grasp the magnitude of this technological shift and take proactive steps to incorporate GenAI into their operations today, the potential gains extend beyond the conventional “first-mover advantage”. With GenAI, the possibilities are limitless.