Impact on the Workforce with AI in Healthcare

Author:James Doulgeris, Chairman, Population Health Advisory Board, RSDSA

Many healthcare professionals view the advent of AI with considerable concern and a fair measure of trepidation. For virtually everyone, their worries are misplaced because AI is a tool that will make their jobs easier and more personally and professionally rewarding. Here are some prime examples.

Artificial intelligence has been incorporating itself into healthcare for years. Equipment gets smarter and more capable. Systems become easier to use and more intuitive. Routine tasks that used to be done by people are now routinely done by EMR and other integrated systems. Only recently has the spectra of AI become worrisome as its role has accelerated enough to become noticeable. Nonetheless, AI is still a tool that will make our jobs easier and more personally and professionally rewarding. While time will tell where things go, at present, AI is here to augment, not replace, humans and these are exciting times.

While the threat of our computer overlords remains stuff of science fiction, here is a fact based look at how AI is impacting the healthcare workforce in some critical ways:

Revolutionizing Primary and Specialty Care

The largest immediate impact by far is at the primary care level where most chronic and rare disease is identified and treated. Early diagnosis and focused treatment is the key to improving health status and mitigating long term impact of chronic conditions. There is a long list of routine administrative tasks that are being assumed by AI at the point of care allowing primary care providers to focus their attention on their patients instead of electronic medical record systems. Chronic conditions represent over three quarters of the cost of care under the age of 65 and over 95 percent of the cost over the age of 65. Rare diseases, of which there are about 7,000, are often less rare than rarely diagnosed before it is too late to treat them effectively.

The first operating entity in this area is Navina, which uses a novel AI to sift through EMR data including handwritten notes and disparate data such as specialist, laboratory and imaging reports to create an organized, one-page clinical summary for clinicians prior to each visit. This summary saves up to 25 percent of the time spent on EMR focus for each visit. Further, the company is exploring a partnership with a non-profit rare disease support group to identify potential patients using its platform that can save patients a lifetime of misery.

Once identified, the system can direct physicians on proper diagnosis, treatment, and support of this and prospectively many other rare diseases.

AI is already on its way to revolutionizing primary care by relieving it of the following administrative burdens, further freeing clinicians to focus on patient care and to practice at the top of their licenses:

1. Data Entry and Documentation: Natural Language Processing (NLP) systems can transcribe spoken words into text or extract information from medical records.
2. Appointment Scheduling: Chatbots and other automated scheduling systems can handle appointment bookings and reminders. Patients can schedule appointments online or through automated phone systems, reducing the need for staff to manage appointment logistics.
3. Medical Coding: Automatic assignment and recommendation of diagnostic and procedural codes allows medical coders to focus on high level issues instead of low-level clerical duties while reducing human error.
4. Billing and Claims Processing: Automating the billing process by generating invoices, verifying insurance information, and processing claims ensures timely and accurate billing, reducing administrative overhead, human error and enhancing cash flow.
5. Patient Communication: Communication tools can send automated follow-up messages, appointment reminders, and educational materials to patients, improving patient engagement and reducing workload.
6. Transcription Services: Voice to text transcription allows medical records to be updated and shared with the patient at the point of care.

Read complete Article to know point to point: https://www.europeanhhm.com/facilities-operations/impact-workforce-with-ai-in-healthcare

Samir Redzepagic, MD, Public Health Officer, Monash Public Health