Leveraging AI technologies in clinical care: the use of collaborative intelligence

By Pooja Toshniwal PahariaSep 27 2023Reviewed by Lily Ramsey, LLM

In a recent review published in npj Digital Medicine, researchers reviewed existing data on collaborative intelligence to transform healthcare services digitally.

Study: Collaborative Intelligence to catalyze the digital transformation of healthcare. Image Credit: Zapp2Photo/Shutterstock.com

Background

Collaborative intelligence is a system that employs artificial intelligence (AI) to improve clinical treatment by dealing with information overload and complexity while eliminating inequities.

It incorporates advanced analytics and computational power, but it also needs clinical participation and comprehension of algorithms. This technique is especially well-suited for non-urgent, low-complexity treatment and detecting at-risk patients.

Collaborative intelligence can reduce clinician workload and enhance access to treatment by integrating clinicians in developing algorithms and evidence-based practice.

About the review

In the present review, researchers discussed collaborative AI, its origins, development hurdles, and approaches for harnessing its strength.

Collaborative intelligence: vision and advantages

Collaborative intelligence is a digital method that uses modern analytics and computational capacity, with the awareness that people are responsible for training data for completeness, accuracy, and eliminating bias.

This technology has altered radiology by allowing the incorporation of imaging- and non-imaging-related information into clinical treatment in various disciplines.

Collaborative intelligence focuses on refining algorithms rather than replacing human intelligence, providing a fresh perspective on how medicine may embrace data technology and handle the digital healthcare revolution while maintaining clinician-patient interaction at the forefront.

Due to the shrinking clinical staff, the rising illness load cannot be addressed one-on-one. Using continuous care-type models, optimizing resource allocation, and minimizing gaps in quality and access are part of the present healthcare problem.

Artificial intelligence and information analytics can help solve these issues and improve patient care. Clinical decision support optimizes treatment by using the power of patient-level data and recommendations.

Data analytics and collaborative intelligence provide a once-in-a-lifetime chance to strengthen the basis of medical care by using scientifically rigorous clinical knowledge throughout clinician-patient contact.

Generative AI uses massive language models to scan and search text and leverages AI to provide human intelligence in answering queries. Blended care, which combines in-person and virtual synchronous visits, promotes convenience, lowers expenses, and allows people to get treatment in a non-threatening atmosphere.

Digital tracking and wearables are critical for remote cardiovascular care screening, monitoring, and therapy.

In circumstances where patients cannot be monitored remotely or virtually, or if intervention at tertiary centers is required, AI-enabled digital screening methods help to detect illness development early and optimize clinical processes. Individually, ensuring fair access to technology is critical for optimal systems.

Collaborative intelligence use in clinical care

AI and collaborative intelligence are transforming healthcare by delivering more efficient and effective treatment.

As doctors establish faith in these systems, they must grasp the exact components of the process or result they intend to address. This trust is essential for physicians to offer high-quality treatment and for the system to make sound judgments.

Clinicians must be involved in algorithm creation and include peer-reviewed clinical recommendations to produce collaborative intelligence that delivers clinical assistance at the point of treatment.

Human-centered practices are required to deliver seamless experiences for overburdened professionals. AI can also assist in identifying high-risk patients and directing them to necessary care promptly.

The clinical team should direct care procedures, ensuring that the patient is always in charge of final care implementation. Since the clinician's authority may multiply success and failure, safe and high-quality AI outputs require agreement between developers and end-users.

Clinicians should examine technology in the context of its clinical setting, system, or business. AI has the potential to alter human interpretation of massive volumes of data, improve healthcare practice efficiency, and empower patients with more curated information.

Conclusions

Based on the review findings and by evaluating millions of patient data points, collaborative intelligence is changing clinical treatment. This technology enables doctors to build a complete patient image, allowing for high-quality therapy. With illness load and complexity rising and shrinking clinical staff, AI involvement is critical for operational sustainability.

Through standardized, high-quality treatment, technology-enabled care, particularly digital health technology with AI inside, extends physicians' access to communities and increases health equity.

However, critical thinking abilities must be used to analyze AI-sourced information and make educated judgments. Clinicians and hospitals need tools and resources to validate data, monitor AI models, and remedy errors or biases.

For doctors to use AI in clinical treatment, they must have experience and didactic training. Ultimately, neither the human brain nor AI algorithms can reach flawless accuracy and precision.