Artificial intelligence is not only reshaping healthcare, it’s becoming a reality in many medical specialties. It has made healthcare delivery more efficient and precise, shares Rupak Barua, Director & Group CEO, AMRI Hospitals, Kolkata with Kaanchi Chawla of Elets News Network (ENN). Edited excerpts:

Which are the healthcare segments that are witnessing augmented use of AI in delivering efficient healthcare?

Artificial intelligence is not only reshaping healthcare, it’s becoming a reality in many medical specialties. Tech advances like AI, Machine Learning, NLP, and Deep Learning are enabling the healthcare sector to identify needs and solutions faster, and in taking informed decisions with greater accuracy and precision, shares Rupak Barua, Director & Group CEO, AMRI Hospitals, Kolkata. AI has the ability to analyse vast amounts of data through algorithms that can identify patterns within the available data, which would otherwise have taken much longer if done manually. Although practical usages of AI are still not as easily available with us as it is in the west, and mostly restricted to research institutes, AI can help in analysing medical imaging, predicting types of cancers and kidney diseases, and also help in analysing big data. All these will go a long way in providing more efficient healthcare services.

How has AI transformed healthcare delivery? What are some of the notable use cases that you recall?

AI has made healthcare delivery more efficient and precise, besides significantly improving turnaround times. Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit us, we realised the importance of digital tools and platforms even more, as we used many of these to deliver healthcare solutions to patients, who were stuck at home. Even the basic forms of predictive algorithms available to us showed how easier it is to analyse patterns and suggest treatment protocols. As, AI gets increasingly integrated with the healthcare sector superstructure, we will be able to pass on the benefits of further advances to our patients.

While AI has provided multiple advantages to the healthcare sector, a case study that stands out is a research paper published by the University of Hawaii in 2021, which after studying 25,000 mammograms using algorithms, demonstrated how AI can improve breast cancer risk prediction. The analysis showed that AI improved risk prediction for breast cancer cases that were detected through screening. Although we are yet to reach such levels of advancement in India, since the technology has been successfully used, it is only a matter of time that some local developer builds something for the Indian context.

The growing digital footprints and technology trends have enhanced the healthcare systems, but there still lies the need for human manpower. Where are the gaps in curating healthcare data?

We have come across two primary gaps: the non-availability of proper health information for a large section of the population, and lack of stable telecom infrastructure in rural areas. While the first is an impediment about which we can’t do much, the second can be corrected, and the government is taking steps in that direction.

Since, we didn’t have the benefit of a Social Security Number platform like Aadhar so far, a lot of data is missing, or is yet to be digitised. Our population also makes it difficult, if not impossible, to collect and collate data from across India. For much of our 60-plus population, even basic information related to birth and congenital health issues are missing. Given that till late-1990s records were mostly analog, there’s a backlog in digitising the data, as more and more new data is getting added to the pile every day.

Along with this, unreliable telephone & internet services make it difficult in reaching out to the population of even some Tier II and Tier III places where medical infrastructure is inadequate. Since, we use technology not just to deliver advanced healthcare but also to make it more accessible and affordable to the masses, poor infrastructure makes it difficult to offer proper telemedicine facilities in such areas. Until addressed, these gaps will continue to remain despite the availability of advanced digital tools.

As technological advancements continue rapidly, healthcare providers move towards more digital care options to enhance their treatment and patient experience. Your thoughts…

At a time, when advanced digital platforms like AI, Machine Learning, and Cloud technology are changing every aspect of our lives, healthcare can make great use of these. Harnessing the power of Internet & mobile telephony, and overall digitalisation, is imperative. In order to leverage the full potential of these platforms, along with that of knowledge processing & data management, we need large scale infrastructure development to have wider access to technological advancements.

While we mostly find that tech advances are easily available in urban areas, it’s crucial to have the similar infrastructural support even in rural areas to make healthcare more accessible and affordable. A major roadblock for quality healthcare is uneven geographical terrain in large parts of our country but with infrastructure to support digital network, we can provide quality healthcare even in remote areas.

What more can be done to enhance healthcare innovations in India?

There is no doubt that the need to increase access and scope of healthcare is growing every day. It’s also becoming increasingly essential to adapt technological innovations into healthcare to make diagnosis and treatment more precise. While concerned government bodies have been taking efforts to improve infrastructure and are working to provide technological support even in remote areas, the private sector also needs to get on board and extend support.

Without a collaborative effort towards making such endeavours successful, healthcare can’t be made economically viable for patients. It is only when governments, research institutes, innovators, tech developers, and healthcare service providers come together that best practices can be formulated through better sharing of information and cross-sector teamwork.

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