New technology is not about replacing people; instead, it can give advice to healthcare professionals about how to better treat patients
As cognitive computing continues to make headlines globally and be a focus of many industries we take a look at its potential impacts in the healthcare industry.
What is the general industry feeling towards cognitive computing within the healthcare industry, and among IBM healthcare users?
Those clients that are aware of cognitive computing and its abilities are excited and engaged. However, a large number of healthcare clients and parts of the healthcare industry remain unaware of abilities on offer. It is important to raise awareness of what is on offer and how it can be used, especially, outside of conventional technology groups which make up some of the healthcare sectors.
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What is exciting about cognitive computing for healthcare organizations?
One of the most exciting aspects is the ability for cognitive computing to act as an adviser. It has the ability to augment the ability of healthcare professionals by giving advice and an additional opinion. Overall this will allow for an extra level of assurance in the service provided by the healthcare industry; giving patients and clients more confidence in the service they are receiving.
Cognitive computing is often described as being able to outperform humans in many areas – is this accurate?
There is a perceived concern that humans and jobs will be replaced by technology, a view which is largely driven by the media. In reality, cognitive computing and IBM will be used to advise, not to make decisions. The need for a trained expert to make final decisions will always be required. When it is understood that this is a complimentary technology for experts to use and will not replace trained professionals, then the industry will become more open and enthusiastic about it. Cognitive computing is not about replacing people – the aim is to make people more effective in their roles, to support them so that they are able to focus on the value-adding aspects of their jobs.
How do you see IBM’s position in the area of cognitive computing?
Overall we are in a strong position but there is always room for improvement and to be better. As a company, we need to capitalize on this advantage that we currently have and continue to build on it. We can’t slow down.
What possible gaps are there in cognitive computing in healthcare?
There are many potential gaps yet to be addressed. For example, at the moment Watson provides a service which is an adviser in oncology. We need to develop this ability to cover other important areas, such as cardiology or surgery. Another gap is the language ability, which needs to be developed so we can offer an ability to deploy in other languages – this is a critical area of focus.
The paper highlights a gap between data quantity and data insights – do you have any clients where they had too much data and too little insight?
A recent report by IBM, the maker of cognitive technology Watson, highlights that the healthcare industry, in general, has access to such a large amount of data they can be short on insight at times. Often there is less insight than would be ideal due to a lack of resources, time, and finances within the industry. One of the objectives of cognitive computing in healthcare is to provide the support required to address this issue.
Date: June 20, 2016