How is artificial intelligence transforming the healthcare industry?

Sponsored by Canadian University of Dubai 

Artificial intelligence provides an opportunity to transform the world and break through our limitations of what is possible. There’s no industry that’s truer than in healthcare, where healthcare professionals are facing an increasing number of burdens and patients’ expectations are growing with digital age. 

While technology may be years away from the ability to think and reason through complex problems, computers can perform faster than humans when it comes to processing questions and answers and so digital transformation within the healthcare industry is growing exponentially. By 2025, healthcare data is expected to increase by 36 percent. 

At Canadian University Dubai (CUD), management experts are focusing on the power of artificial intelligence in healthcare to enhance human experiences, empowering both healthcare providers and patients in managing treatment and therapy plans, and achieving their health goals. 

Building a human-centric approach to healthcare

In a masterclass with renowned guest speaker and engineer, Muhammad Mudassar, CUD held a discussion about demystifying artificial intelligence in healthcare management to inspire ideas around creating optimal, precise and personalised care across the health continuum. 

As regional business lead for data management and Interop solutions at Philips, Mr Mudassar’s focus is in enabling digital health and AI solutions to deliver quality patient outcomes through end-to-end operations and clinical performance management.  

Mr Mudassar said: “There is a clear need for AI to support healthcare providers and patients through making the abundance of data sensical. When it comes to healthcare management, AI can provide a necessary key to wellness, a solution to labour shortages, a guardrail for health and safety and an answer to staff burnout, to name a few.”

According to Mr Mudassar, it’s care providers driving the AI innovations forward as they face more challenges day to day and with the number of approved algorithms improving after rigorous clinical trials, AI applications are on the rise. 

“AI can be applied with human centric applications across healthcare management, creating thriving healthcare organisations. Combining the power of AI, together with the clinical knowledge of practitioners and leaders in the medical industry can create solutions which can be integrated into the workflows of healthcare providers.”  

What’s to stop AI taking on too much?

“Expectations are everything in artificial intelligence,” said Mr Mudassar. It’s important that we have realistic expectations of AI and how to think about computers that ‘think’. It’s also vital to find, fight and prevent AI and algorithmic bias.

“After all, AI is not free from error and innovation must be geared to nurture a positive healthcare management system.”

While information technology can create a multitude of solutions in AI, there are challenges to accessing large datasets while maintaining patient privacy protection, clean curated data, measuring performance and evolving regulatory standards. 

Mr Mudassar emphasises that the healthcare industry should separate between “hope and hype” when it comes to AI. In terms of systems that can think and reason enough to solve complex problems, “we’re nowhere close to such technology”, he said.   

Instead, he feels the answer lies in “combining the power of AI with the clinical knowledge of practitioners and leaders in the medical industry can create solutions which can be integrated into the workflows of healthcare providers.”  

Creating strategic healthcare leaders to drive AI solutions

Students on the Master of Information Technology Management (MIMT) programme at CUD combine the principles of business with the demands and opportunities presented by modern technology, like those in the healthcare industry. 

The one-year master’s degree enables students to lead and manage innovative projects, to make data-driven decisions and to identify new solutions for future challenges. Based in the university’s Faculty of Management, one of the largest business schools in the United Arab Emirates, the MITM programme brings North American-standard education and learning practises, delivered by industry experts from across the globe. 

Dr Rachid Alami is associate professor and associate dean of graduate studies in the Faculty of Management at CUD. He’s also programme leader for the MIMT. 

He said: “Artificial intelligence has the potential to transform healthcare services into an entirely efficient patient-centric process. With AI, we can help people take better care of their health and well-being, enabling healthcare providers to do what they do best. 

“AI is the perfect solution to handle high levels of information-driven variation and dissemination. AI can be leveraged to monitor and refine processes to and make predictions to achieve even greater efficiencies and to mine data from lab, medication and claims to recommend the most appropriate actions.” 

Graduates of the Master of Information Technology Management degree at CUD could explore a career as a chief information officer, chief technology office, IT project manager or data centre manager across a wealth of industries, including healthcare. 

Photo by Edward Jenner