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Beyond the Hype: How Artificial Intelligence is Reshaping Healthcare from Administrative Workflows to Clinical Decision-Making

 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming various industries, and healthcare is no exception. In a recent webinar Greg Farnum, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Audacious Inquiry, a PointClickCare Company, and Dean Slawson, Vice President of Advanced Technology at PointClickCare discussed the potential benefits and practical applications of AI in healthcare. This blog post summarizes the key points from the webinar, highlighting how AI can enhance patient care, streamline administrative processes, and improve overall healthcare outcomes.

Understanding Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Decision-Making

Dean Slawson provided an overview of AI, emphasizing that while AI technologies do not think or learn like humans, they can still deliver significant value. He explained various AI techniques, including machine learning, deep learning, and natural language processing (NLP), and how these can be applied in healthcare settings.

PointClickCare is actively integrating AI to enhance patient care. Here are some key examples of AI augmentation capabilities outlined in the webinar:

  1. Predictive Analytics: PointClickCare uses AI models like Predictive Return to Hospital (PRTH) to predict the likelihood of patients being readmitted to the hospital after discharge. This helps caregivers focus on high-risk patients and improve care outcomes.
  2. Chart Summarization: AI tools are being developed to summarize patient charts, saving time during shift changes and ensuring critical information is not omitted. This is particularly useful for new staff and family inquiries.
  3. Semantic Search: PointClickCare is implementing AI-powered semantic search capabilities, allowing users to search clinical charts using natural language queries. This improves efficiency and accuracy in accessing patient information.

Dean emphasized the importance of responsible AI development, which involves multidisciplinary collaboration, risk assessments, and continuous monitoring. He highlighted the need for transparency, explainability, and human oversight to ensure AI tools are safe and effective.

To learn more about PointClickCare’s Predictive Return to Hospital Model, visit the PointClickCare website here.

Administrative Applications of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare

Greg Farnum discussed how AI can reduce administrative burdens in healthcare. He dispelled myths about AI fully automating tasks and replacing human roles, emphasizing that AI should augment human capabilities.

Greg highlighted Audacious’ current AI work for the Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy (ASTP), formerly known as the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). This contract, awarded in September 2024, focuses on enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of internal ASTP processes using cutting-edge AI and Robotic Process Automation (RPA) across seven key areas:

  1. Jira Improvement: Enhancing project and issue tracking.
  2. Certified Health Products List (CHPL) Enhancement: Improving the CHPL, similar to CMS’s healthcare product databases.
  3. Data Analysis: Uncovering insights from vast data repositories.
  4. Health IT Standards Assessment: Streamlining policy and compliance processes.
  5. Administrative Support: Automating support tasks to free up staff time.
  6. Communications: Enhancing both internal and external communications.
  7. Form Automations: Reducing paperwork burden by automating various form

In addition to the current applications of AI for ASTP, Greg explained other administrative uses of AI in healthcare including automating routine tasks, such as scheduling, billing, and documentation, by processing unstructured data from emails, forms, and other secure, organizational knowledge sources. This not only improves efficiency but also reduces the administrative burden on staff, allowing them to focus on more critical tasks.

Conclusion

Artificial Intelligence is transforming healthcare, offering opportunities to improve patient outcomes, streamline administrative processes, and enhance the efficiency of healthcare providers. As we continue to develop and integrate AI technologies, it is crucial to approach this transformation responsibly, ensuring that these tools are safe, effective, and beneficial for all stakeholders.

Whether you are looking to reduce administrative burdens, enhance patient care, or ensure compliance, AI has the potential to revolutionize your operations. Do not wait—take the first step towards integrating AI into your healthcare workflows today. Together, we can create a smarter, more efficient, and patient-centered healthcare system.

If your organization is interested in utilizing AI for healthcare clinical or administrative workflows, please reach out to us at fedbdops@ainq.com.