Hartford Business Journal

20 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | SEPTEMBER 18, 2023 manufacturer Medtronic's "GI Genius" is used to help physi- cians detect colorectal polyps during colonoscopies. Medtronic, which has a Connecticut presence, reports the AI-enabled technology boosts benign tumor detection by up to 14.4%. "(AI) does a very good job of highlighting areas of abnormality — though it has to be reviewed carefully by a radiologist or specialist because (artificial intelligence is) not perfect," Schwamm said. Dr. Barry Stein, chief clinical innovation officer at Hartford HealthCare, said AI has many clinical uses. In stroke victims, he said algo- rithms can help predict patients who are most likely to develop secondary strokes, which allows medical professionals to intervene with preventive measures. For oncology patients, Hartford HealthCare has developed an algo- rithm to help predict which patients are at highest risk of becoming severely ill following chemotherapy. Hartford HealthCare has also developed a partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to help translate AI into clinical practice and improve patient outcomes. The AI market in health care was valued at $15 billion in 2022, and is expected to reach $188 billion by 2030, according to Statista. The growth could mean cost savings for the industry. According to a January report by McKinsey & Co. and Harvard Univer- sity, wider adoption of AI could lead to savings of 5% to 10% in U.S. health- care spending, which translates up to about $360 billion annually. AI into the future OpenAI's ChatGPT, launched in 2022, processes large amounts of data to produce human-like responses to questions. Yale, in collaboration with Wiscon- sin-based electronic health record vendor Epic, will be experimenting with AI's use to create a first-draft response to a patient message in a patient portal, according to Schwamm. If a patient emails or messages their doctor with a question — such as whether their potassium level was normal on a blood test — generative AI can draft an initial response. The provider can then review, edit and send it. This saves time for caregivers to focus on other duties. "We are about to start piloting that project in the very near future," Schwamm said. AI will also potentially play a role in care navigation and patient inter- action. Instead of calling to request a doctor's appointment, a patient might first interact with conversational AI. The patient would describe their symptoms, like eye pain, to an AI platform. The AI would ask relevant questions, like whether the eye appears pink, or if the patient has experienced eye trauma. It would then suggest a possible diagnosis, such as conjunctivitis, and connect the patient to virtual urgent care services, according Dr. Joseph Schindler is the director of the Yale New Haven Comprehensive Stroke Center, which uses artificial intelligence to locate blockages, evaluate damage and assess stroke patient treatment options. HBJ PHOTO | BILL MORGAN to Schwamm. Yale is exploring multiple vendors to bring AI into use during medical visits, too. The goal, Schwamm said, is for artificial intelligence to capture medical interview and office visit information and craft it into an orga- nized, structured note that is ready for human editing. "Those are just a few examples of where I think we might start to see really powerful use of these tools," Schwamm said. "The other is to prompt physicians into thinking about various possible diagnoses based on a list of the symptoms the patient is complaining about." AI and machine-learning tools can also help identify deteriorating patients, leading to faster analysis and intervention, Schwamm said. "What we haven't seen yet are situ- ations where AI detects a problem, triggers an intervention and then resolves the issue without human intervention," Schwamm said. He foresees AI adjusting insulin pumps when someone's sugar is too low, or alerting people about their blood pressure. Stein anticipates that AI will help predict what patients' future health trajectories look like, taking into account a person's health history and demographics. "It can help us predict what is going to happen to our patients, and help us prescribe what is best for our patients," Stein said. Administrative tasks, payment integrity AI is also helpful with routine, cler- ical administrative tasks, which can free up employees to do other duties, Schwamm noted. Artificial intelligence is expected to take over many administrative tasks at Yale, such as accurately coding visits based on the care given and submit- ting paperwork for reimbursement. "We have a terrible workforce shortage problem in health care, and it's only going to get worse," Schwamm said. "We don't have enough doctors, nurses, pharmacists, etc. So, we have to figure out ways to support our providers being more effective and more productive with their time and to focus their attention on more complicated tasks." At Hartford HealthCare, AI is helping with scheduling nurses, to match their areas of expertise Barry Stein 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 $200 $150 $100 $50 0 The AI healthcare market's total projected value AI IN CT Source: Statista MARKET SIZE (IN BILLIONS)

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