Healthcare, a sector ripe for technological transformation, stands at the precipice of life-changing innovations. However, the intricate web of the U.S. healthcare landscape, historically plagued by bottlenecks in care delivery and data sharing, may be impeding progress, particularly in the realm of generative artificial intelligence (AI), which has the untapped potential to revolutionize patient and provider interactions across the entire healthcare journey.
Curiously, major public healthcare organizations have been relatively silent about their utilization of AI innovations during their most recent earnings calls for 2023. This silence should not be mistaken for a lack of experimentation with this new technology. Rather, it might be attributed to the fact that AI’s applications within healthcare are still largely unproven, and massive healthcare juggernauts tend to navigate change slowly.
For instance, CVS Health discreetly disclosed in its 10-K filing that it is making substantial investments in emerging technologies such as voice, artificial intelligence, and robotics to enhance automation, reduce costs, and enhance the overall experience for all stakeholders.
The integration of AI into healthcare is unsurprisingly focused on alleviating administrative burdens and enhancing operational efficiency, particularly in light of the industry’s challenges related to labor shortages and burnout among physicians and nurses. Mark Bertolini, the recently appointed CEO of health tech company and insurance platform Oscar Health, stated in the company’s Q2 2023 earnings report that they expect to achieve administrative cost savings through technological efficiencies.
The Physician Wish List:
While it’s been noted that many commercially available generative AI tools are not specifically trained on healthcare data, rendering them less accurate and reliable, there is still ample room for AI to transform healthcare. Healthcare organizations possess a wealth of information in the form of disparate data silos, and modern AI can bridge these data gaps to drive better business decisions, improve clinical outcomes, and enhance patient care delivery.
Areas where AI can make an immediate impact include healthcare system workflow automation and optimization, structuring and analysis of healthcare data, ambient monitoring of patient engagement, automation of administrative call centers, and other customer service-oriented efficiency improvements.
As generative AI’s capabilities advance and sector-specific models become more readily available, the technology can be applied in more complex and nuanced situations. Clinical decision support tools, optimized telehealth platforms, remote care delivery, diagnostic and treatment decision support are all areas where AI, when matured successfully, could deliver unprecedented healthcare outcomes and treatments.
Aside from concerns about accuracy and expertise, the regulatory and legal gray areas surrounding AI tools may be hindering health systems’ adoption of cutting-edge AI capabilities. Initial integrations of AI tools may focus more on internal initiatives, such as patient billing or appointment scheduling.
Consumers are generally receptive to technology-driven health services, including healthcare payments. A study conducted with Lynx revealed that 79% of consumers desire a single digital platform that centralizes healthcare tasks and facilitates bill payments.
Innovation in the Healthcare Marketplace:
Healthcare players are actively exploring AI applications. For example, HCA Healthcare recently partnered with Google Cloud and Augmedix to deploy generative AI in emergency departments. This collaboration aims to streamline workflows by replacing clinical documentation with conversation-generated medical notes, allowing healthcare professionals to focus more on patient care.
Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield announced plans to expand an AI-driven virtual-first health plan that leverages innovative technology to streamline health services for patients.
Moreover, leading electronic health record provider Epic and Duke Health (Duke University Health System) have entered separate partnerships with Microsoft to harness its AI capabilities and cloud technology to enhance healthcare delivery.
As AI technology continues to evolve and prove its worth, the healthcare industry is on the cusp of transformative change that promises to enhance patient care, reduce administrative burdens, and improve overall efficiency.
