Tech

How AI and quantum computing are revolutionizing the future

Tech
February 4, 2025

In the lead-up to the recently concluded U.S. presidential election, Elon Musk, the celebrity tech billionaire and the world’s’ richest man, officially endorsed Donald Trump. While Musk was full of praise for the former president, Grok, the AI chatbot he owns, had a starkly different perspective. When asked about Trump, it described him as “a convicted felon, conman, rapist, pedophile, fraudster, pathological liar, and wannabe dictator.” Ouch!

While Grok is Mr. …

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The future of cardiac monitoring: AI-powered wearables in practice

Tech
February 2, 2025

Introduction

AI-powered wearables are revolutionizing health care, particularly in cardiac health. These devices continuously monitor heart function, enabling early detection of abnormalities and personalized care. Digital medicine’s integration with AI promises to significantly improve patient outcomes. While AI wearables offer vast potential, challenges persist, including concerns about data accuracy, privacy, and regulatory approval, as well as the need for clear ethical guidelines.

Opportunities of AI-powered wearables

AI wearables provide numerous opportunities for …

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Small language models and edge technology: Transforming health care delivery

Tech
January 28, 2025

Artificial intelligence (AI) advances are ushering in a new era of health care innovation, and small language models (SLMs) deployed on edge devices are leading the charge. Unlike large-scale AI systems, SLMs are lightweight, efficient, and capable of operating on localized devices such as smartphones, wearables, and IoT sensors. By combining the power of edge computing with the adaptability of SLMs, health care professionals can benefit from real-time, cost-effective solutions …

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How AI is transforming medicine faster than ever before

Tech
January 22, 2025

Since the release of large language models such as ChatGPT in November of 2022, medicine has been transformed in ways previously unimaginable by using artificial intelligence (AI) as a tool to solve problems. The use of natural language processing (NLP) in a transformer model allows physicians to explore the massive amount of data in a patient’s electronic medical record to identify key opportunities to improve patient care. In addition, machine …

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Beyond the stethoscope: the AI-powered revolution and personalized medicine will shape the next era of U.S. health care

Tech
January 21, 2025

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming health care, with a particular focus on enhancing patient care through precision medicine, advanced ultrasound guidance, and real-time treatment adaptation. These innovations promise a future where personalized treatment plans, more accurate diagnostics, and optimized care are not just possibilities but routine practice. Health care professionals are beginning to see the benefits of AI in real-world settings, and the potential for improving patient outcomes is nothing …

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Under siege: the escalating ransomware crisis in health care

Tech
December 29, 2024

It’s not your imagination. Ransomware threats to health care organizations are at record levels and continue to rise. Last year, there were 389 reported ransomware attacks on health care organizations in the U.S., up from 258 in 2022. This year, there were 44 ransomware attacks against health care organizations in April alone, the most ever recorded for one month by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future and up from 30 in March. …

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Evaluating the performance of health care artificial intelligence (AI): the role of AUPRC, AUROC, and average precision

Tech
December 23, 2024

As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes more embedded in health care, the ability to accurately evaluate AI models is critical. In medical applications, where early diagnosis and anomaly detection are often key, selecting the right performance AI metrics can determine the clinical success or failure of AI tools. If a health care AI tool claims to predict disease risk or guide treatment options, it must be rigorously validated to ensure its …

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AI’s cognitive gap: Why human doctors remain irreplaceable

Tech
December 21, 2024

Around Christmas time every year, The BMJ publishes lighthearted feature articles and original, peer-reviewed research intended to ease physicians into the holiday season and help them escape the drudgery of practice. The 2024 collection of articles is no exception, with enticing papers like “How to transport a polar bear, and other idiosyncrasies in providing emergency medical services in the Arctic” and “Living happily ever after? The hidden health risks of Disney princesses.”

My favorite …

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How to combat charting overload

Tech
December 20, 2024

Charting: It’s a word that can make even the most seasoned clinician’s shoulders tense.

In my journey as the nurse practitioner charting coach, I’ve uncovered the shared struggles clinicians face with charting overload, which is why I now teach nurse practitioners actionable strategies to regain control of the charting process and restore their work-life balance. This article will dive into the impact of charting overload on clinicians and practical steps you …

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AI hype could undermine its real potential in health care

Tech
December 20, 2024

Imagine if headlines proclaimed, “X-ray sees what doctors can’t” or “Lab test outperforms physicians’ clinical gestalt.” Absurd, right? You can recognize how such claims distort the role these tools play in health care. So why do current narratives surrounding artificial intelligence (AI) sound so similar?

We’ve all seen the sensational headlines: “AI chatbots defeated doctors at diagnosing illness” or “Using AI to detect breast cancer that doctors miss.” These …

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Harnessing the power of AI to improve prostate cancer outcomes

Tech
December 15, 2024

It’s important to highlight the significant progress being made to improve outcomes for men facing health challenges. Efforts to transform men’s health focus on advancing awareness and reshaping how conditions such as prostate cancer are understood and treated.

Globally, prostate cancer remains one of the most significant health challenges faced by men. Fortunately, advancements in data science are offering promising solutions to improve outcomes. While traditional methods of tracking prostate cancer …

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Where physicians need to implement AI first

Tech
December 14, 2024

Like most physicians, I’m cautiously optimistic and sometimes skeptical about the AI-powered tools coming to health care.

As a dermatologist, I understand the dire need in our profession to address administrative burdens that can be soul-crushing–the constant barrage of documentation needs, non-clinical paper shuffling, and ever-changing reporting requirements, to name a few. As a software executive, I also understand the deeply complex technical requirements needed to integrate AI into existing systems …

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Navigating Goodhart’s Law dilemma and the future of AI in medicine

Tech
December 12, 2024

As artificial intelligence (AI) systems increasingly permeate our health care industry, it is imperative that physicians take a proactive role in evaluating these novel technologies. AI-driven tools are reshaping diagnostics, treatment planning, and risk assessment, but with this transformation comes the responsibility to ensure that these systems are valid, reliable, and ethically deployed. A clear understanding of key concepts like validity, reliability, and the limitations of AI performance metrics is …

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The impact of digital health tools on preventing chronic disease: a public health revolution

Tech
December 11, 2024

Imagine a world where chronic diseases like diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension—long-standing giants of global health care burden—are intercepted before they take root. A smartwatch buzzing with a warning of an irregular heartbeat. An app gently nudging someone to take a short walk after hours of inactivity. For millions, these digital whispers are not just reminders but lifelines. In an age where chronic illnesses claim over 41 million lives annually, …

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Are the AI safeguards currently in place sufficient to prevent a doomsday scenario?

Tech
December 2, 2024

My vote for Time’s Person of the Year is Artificial Intelligence (AI). I think AI is the most talked about and hyped (overhyped?) development of 2024, already transforming operations across numerous sectors, from manufacturing to financial services. In the health sector, AI has ushered in groundbreaking advancements in several areas, including psychotherapy, substituting for therapists and also posing ominous portents for physicians. AI systems that learn …

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Addressing the mental health crisis with virtual on demand

Tech
November 26, 2024

The U.S. is grappling with a mental health crisis. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that one in five US adults live with a mental illness. This includes disorders such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and more, ranging in severity from mild-moderate to severe.

Telehealth has proven to be an effective tool in addressing the crisis by improving access to care, reducing stigma, and providing flexible, timely support.

Imagine …

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How each generation sees AI: a reflection on adaptation

Tech
November 19, 2024

Disclaimer: This is a broad generalization meant to spark reflection. While no one perfectly fits into generational boxes, these insights are designed to explore how each age group navigates the evolving world of artificial intelligence (AI).

Generation Z (born 1997–2012): the digital natives

How they see AI: AI is like oxygen for Gen Z—essential, omnipresent, and often unnoticed. Growing up with smartphones, streaming algorithms, and social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram, …

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Reducing medical errors from health care AI: lessons from Claude Shannon and Max Planck on precision in medicine

Tech
November 17, 2024

In 1948, Claude Shannon revolutionized the world of communication with his theory of information, showing that precision and efficiency could emerge from chaos. Roughly 40 years earlier, Max Planck had done something similar in physics by discovering the rules of quantum mechanics, reducing uncertainty in an unpredictable universe. These two minds, though working in entirely different fields, shared a common vision: to bring order out of entropy. Today, their legacies …

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From handwritten notes to digital solutions: a journey in health IT

Tech
November 13, 2024

The journey of electronic health records (EHRs) mirrors my own professional transformation. As a practicing anesthesiologist at Moffitt Cancer Center in the early 2000s, I handwrote paper charts in an era when computers were already integral to other parts of the hospital.

Relying on manual notes was frustrating and inefficient, so I jumped at the chance to help implement Moffitt’s anesthesia electronic record system. This effort sparked an interest in health …

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