Background

Introduction

The use of digital technology and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare provides us with a series of opportunities and challenges. Digital disruption has transformed working practices in multiple industries.

There is an expectation from the general public that the healthcare domain should keep pace with changes in general society and provide digital services fit for the 21st century. It is also hoped that digital solutions can help to offset the increasing demand for healthcare as people live longer and with more long term conditions1.

In addition to technology and infrastructure, people need to be placed at the centre of this change in order for it to be successful.

Many of these systems require access to patient data to work effectively. Issues of trust, transparency and digital literacy levels are all challenges that need to be overcome. There is an opportunity for the evolving health workforce to lead this change and empower themselves and patients through the effective and ethical use of these technologies.

Challenges and opportunities of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Adapted from Artificial Intelligence: 'How to get it right' 3

Opportunities

  • diagnostics: uses in image recognition, symptom checkers, decision support systems and risk stratification.
  • knowledge generation: drug discovery, pattern recognition, improved knowledge of rare diseases and causality.
  • public health: national screening programmes and digital epidemiology.
  • systems efficiency: optimisation of care pathways, prediction of Do Not Attends, identifying staffing requirements.
  • P4 medicine*: personalised treatment, deterioration prediction and prevention advice.

Challenges

  • leadership and society: ongoing communication between areas of government, industry and academia, including international partnerships.
  • skills/talent: skill development roles in AI development/depployment.
  • data access: innovation through sharing and scaling of data in a fair, ethical and legal way.
  • supporting adoption: Driving public and private sector AI adoption for societal good.
  • international engagement: Securing partnerships that deliver access to scale for our eco-system.

*P4 = predictive, preventative, personalised, participatory.

References

1 Health Education England (2019) The Topol Review: Preparing the healthcare workforce to deliver the digital future

3 Joshi, I., Morley, J.,(eds) (2019). Artificial Intelligence: How to get it right. Putting policy into practice for safe data-driven innovation in health and care. London, United Kingdom: NHSX

Page last reviewed: 14 February 2023
Next review due: 20 February 2024