Fixing the Gaps in Patient Care With AI | Dr. Prateek Arora X Dezy It #aiinhealthcare #podcast #ai

In a recent discussion, Dr. Prateek Arora, a Senior Clinical Fellow at The Christie NHS in Manchester, shared his insights on how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing healthcare. He talked about how AI can help doctors save time, reduce burnout, and improve patient communication. The conversation covered everything from robotic surgery to AI apps that support patients through recovery, offering a practical look at AI's current and future role in medicine.

AI's Big Role in Healthcare

AI is not just a small change in healthcare; it's a massive shift. Dr. Arora believes AI will completely change how healthcare works. He compared it to past breakthroughs like CT scans and anesthesia, which totally changed medicine. AI is expected to bring huge changes in the next few decades, possibly more than the last 400 years of medical history combined. We are just at the beginning of understanding how to use it.

Quick Changes We See Now

One of the biggest and quickest changes AI can bring is fixing the current problems in healthcare systems. Dr. Arora gave an example of how much time doctors spend on paperwork and administrative tasks. For just one patient visit, a doctor might spend an hour or more on reading files, writing notes, and ordering tests, but only a short time actually talking to the patient. This leads to doctor burnout and long wait times for patients.

AI can help by:

• Summarizing patient history: AI can quickly go through patient files and give doctors a summary of what's happened.

• Automating documentation: AI can listen to conversations during appointments and write notes and letters automatically.

• Reducing administrative load: By cutting down on paperwork, AI can free up doctors to see more patients and focus on care.

This could cut down the time spent on these tasks by 50%, which would be a huge win for everyone involved.

Filling Gaps in Patient Care

Dr. Arora pointed out that a big gap in the patient journey, from diagnosis to recovery, is patient education. Patients often have many questions about their condition, treatment, and recovery. These questions can be trivial, but they still need answers. Currently, patients rely on nurses and other staff for this information, but AI apps could do a lot more.

Imagine a patient waiting for surgery. They might have questions like:

• What do I need to do before surgery?

• What should I expect during recovery?

• When can I drive again?

AI-powered healthcare assistants could answer most of these questions. By feeding them all the necessary information, these apps can understand what patients are asking and provide support throughout their journey, from before their clinic visit to post-surgery recovery. This would make patients feel more informed and satisfied.

AI and the Doctor-Patient Relationship

There's a lot of talk about whether AI will replace doctors. Dr. Arora is very positive about this. He believes AI will strengthen the doctor-patient relationship, not replace it. The main goal of healthcare is to provide better patient care, earlier diagnosis, and better treatment. If patients are happy and getting good care, both doctors and patients benefit.

AI can help by:

• Guiding patients to the right doctor: AI apps could help patients understand their symptoms and direct them to the right specialist.

• Preparing patients for appointments: Patients could use AI apps to get answers to their basic questions before seeing the doctor. This means when they do meet the doctor, they can ask more intelligent questions, leading to more meaningful conversations.

• Supporting recovery: AI can help patients understand what to expect during recovery, reducing anxiety and improving outcomes.

This means doctors can focus on the more complex aspects of care, and patients can be more involved and informed about their health.

AI's Impact on Surgical Care

Dr. Arora is very excited about AI's future in surgical care. Robotic surgery is already common, allowing surgeons to perform complex procedures with great precision. AI can take this a step further by:

• Pre-operative planning: AI can analyze patient data, including scans, to predict how a patient will respond to surgery and highlight important anatomical details.

• Real-time guidance during surgery: AI can overlay images from CT scans or MRIs onto the surgical view, helping surgeons see tumors or other structures that might not be visible to the naked eye.

• Improving outcomes: Robotic surgery, combined with AI, can lead to less blood loss, shorter hospital stays, and faster recovery times for patients. Some major surgeries are even becoming day-care procedures.

• Post-operative follow-up: AI can monitor patients after surgery, identifying potential problems early and reducing the need for frequent in-person check-ups.

The Future of Research with AI

Beyond patient care, AI is set to change medical research. Research involves a lot of data analysis and reviewing many publications. AI can speed this up dramatically. For example, a systematic review and meta-analysis that might take a team of researchers months or even a year could be done by an AI in minutes. This massive increase in speed means research can move much faster.

With quantum computers on the horizon, research could reach new levels. These computers can model complex chemical reactions and biological processes much faster than current supercomputers. This could lead to breakthroughs in understanding diseases and developing cures, potentially reducing the need for surgery in some cases. The goal is to find cures, and AI is a powerful tool to get there.

AI is already making a big difference in healthcare, from helping doctors manage their workload to improving patient education and surgical outcomes. The future looks bright, with AI set to bring even more positive changes to how we approach health and medicine.

To learn more about how AI is changing healthcare, visit https://www.dezyit.com.