Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH)

A.I. Care Conference: Struggling to keep up The Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH) hosted its second A.I.+ Care conference in Melbourne this week. Here are six insights from the event: 1. Multiple people called it out. A.I. and machine learning technological developments are happening faster than research and regulations can keep up. 2. A.I. scribe tools are being hailed for the time-saving and potential productivity gains they bring but the lasting benefits may be less dollar-driven. Think better quality notes, enhanced patient engagement and a chance for exhausted doctors to get a toilet break and cuppa. The Australian Digital Health Agency's Dr Amandeep Hansra said using scribe tools, "feels like you have gone back to being a real doctor and not just a data entry person". 3. Several speakers said our healthcare system is struggling with rapidly rising demand and diminishing resources (human and budgetary) and hoping technology can come to the rescue. Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care Assistant Secretary, Digital And Service Design, Sam Peascod, cited Productivity Commission research suggesting integrating A.I. and digital technology could save $5 billion a year in costs and ease systemic pressures, helping free up time equivalent to 83,000 FTE nurses. Mr Peascod said: "The cat's not going back in the bag and the genie is not going back in the bottle. A.I. is here to stay." 4. Scribe tools have been exempt from Therapeutic Goods Administration regulation so far because they have clinical oversight but some folk are calling for change. TGA First Assistant Secretary and head of the Medical Devices and Product Quality Division, Tracey Duffy, said the Administration was fielding insider tips offs and would be turning its gaze to a range of new technologies. Ever-evolving transcription tools were a potential focus as "they are not the simple scribes we first saw". Ms Duffy warned that TGA reviewers would not accept 'black box' explanations of emerging technologies and would be taking a good look under the hood. 5. If you want good outcomes from A.I.-driven initiatives you need to train the tools on your own data. Northern Adelaide Local Health Network's Dr Sam Gluck gave an example of a project using SA Health data that failed in NSW -- until the algorithm was retrained on a local dataset. 6. Australia is risk-averse, small in population, slow on governance, poor at procurement, and reliant on legacy EMRs and other infrastructure. These were just some of the reasons the Australian Institute for Machine Learning's Professor Meng Law gave for why we risk being international laggards on A.I innovation. Professor Law also said Medicare was unlikely to provide a rebate for tasks not handled by humans. MediRecords recently kicked off its A.I. adventure with an integration to Heidi Health's A.I. Scribe technology. Other exciting data-driven innovations are also being explored. #digitalhealth #AICare2024

The Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH) Institute of Digital Health has launched a new on-demand short course in AI in healthcare. Announced at the #AI.Care conference in Melbourne today, the AI in Healthcare: Essentials course will cover the integration of AI in healthcare and how it is expected to enhance patient outcomes and streamline healthcare processes.

This week, I attended the AI Care: Advancing Data-Driven Healthcare conference in Melbourne, hosted by the Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH). It was an inspiring and thought-provoking event, showcasing how artificial intelligence is shaping the future of healthcare. Last year, there was palpable tone of caution and apprehension. Just 12 months later, it was evident that the industry has embraced this technology with increasing confidence, enthusiasm and optimism. Discussions this year were forward-looking, focusing on ethical frameworks, governance, and practical solutions to integrate AI seamlessly into clinical workflows. It was particularly impressive to see healthcare leaders, policymakers, data specialists, and clinicians united in exploring innovative ways to enhance patient care, efficiency, and decision-making through AI. Standout sessions included insights into the role of generative AI in improving clinical outcomes using principles of a clinical method, ethical innovation in data governance, and strategies for harnessing AI for safer, more secure healthcare systems. The emphasis on collaboration, trust, and transparency across the healthcare ecosystem highlighted how far we’ve come in overcoming initial reservations. It’s a testament to how rapidly AI is evolving and being adopted responsibly in Australia’s healthcare sector. I’m excited to see where this journey will lead in transforming care delivery in the next 12 months. https://lnkd.in/g97xbFxX

At AI. Care 2024, one thing was clear: it’s no longer a question of 𝘪𝘧 we incorporate AI into healthcare, but 𝘩𝘰𝘸 we do so safely. As AI tools become increasingly adopted across the healthcare sector, understanding the risks and identifying high-value use cases is becoming essential. Examples include AI agents to improve automation, transform unstructured paper-based documents into structured digital formats, coding and triage applications, voice AI for inbound and outbound calling, and, of course, AI scribes. Consultmed and InterSystems teamed up to host a panel discussion focused on high-value, low-risk applications of AI in healthcare. Our panelists explored what constitutes "low risk" in the context of AI, shared real-world examples of AI being safely adopted in healthcare, and discussed practical frameworks for understanding and mitigating AI risks. They also outlined tangible next steps for clinicians, providers, and vendors to integrate AI safely into healthcare systems. A/Prof Vikram Palit highlighted how Consultpilot AI has been designed and implemented with safety and impact at its core, aiming to drive value while managing risk across various healthcare organisations. Consultmed provides our clients with an AI-impact statement for transparency, detailing how our solutions work, how we mitigate risk, how we test for accuracy, and how we continuously improve our models to ensure safety and effectiveness. A sincere thank you to our panelists— Emma Hossack, Dr Amandeep H., Robin Mann, A/Prof Vikram Palit, and Andrew Aho—as well as the audience, and InterSystems for co-hosting such an insightful and engaging session. And thank you to the team at Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH) for putting on another excellent conference on AI in healthcare. Looking forward to next year! #AIinHealthcare #AICare2024 #digitalhealth Stephanie Hodgson Angela Forbes Paul Benitez Dr Daniel Jeffrey Enrique II B. Geraldine Anne B. José Pablo Levy Amanthi Fernando

Fantastic to talk about our pilot project using our Digital Assistant AI to facilitate medical discharge summaries. Thanks to Australasian Institute of Digital Health (AIDH) for a great forum. Matt Duncombe Kim Laubscher Nicola Commins Jenny Parker EY