How AI can help fix this global healthcare challenge

Source

shulz/Getty Images

The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) can help solve the growing healthcare challenge of aging populations, which many nations are battling, though the usual challenges remain.

According to Singapore’s Health Minister Ong Ye Kung, three significant trends are converging to make this an unprecedented time for tackling healthcare challenges: AI, genomics, and a shift in focus toward preventive healthcare.

Also: How digital twins could save time, money, and lives in developing prescription drugs

Genomics, or precision medicine, tailors healthcare to a person’s unique genes and environment, allowing for more accurate treatment or preventive measures. At the same time, generative AI (gen AI) opens up opportunities to enhance the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, Ong said at a fireside chat during ST Engineering’s InnoTech.Healthcare conference this week.

Per the World Health Organization, one in six people worldwide will be aged 60 years and above by 2030 — accounting for 1.4 billion of the global population. By 2050, that number will double to 2.1 billion, and the number of people aged 80 years and older is projected to reach 426 million. 

By 2050, two-thirds of the population aged 60 and above will also live in low- and middle-income countries.

Ong noted that aging drives several developments in healthcare because it correlates with higher disease load and illnesses and contributes to escalating healthcare costs, not just for patients but also governments and nations. 

Also: Hooking up generative AI to medical data improved usefulness for doctors

Countries like Singapore are working to ensure they can cope with their aging populations. Since aging is inevitable, Ong thinks the country should focus on preventive measures and tapping technology.

Data coupled with AI, for instance, can provide valuable insights into which diseases certain individuals are susceptible to and provide the necessary preventive care, Ong said. He added that data should be stripped of personally identifiable information (PII) and anonymized.