The head of Life Healthcare, one of SA’s largest private hospital groups, does not see growing use of AI in the sector as a threat to human nurses and doctors. Instead, he sees the technology as a tool that will add to efficiency and accuracy in the field.
In modern times, healthcare has tended to be at the cutting edge of science and technology, with billions spent each year on research and development. Some of the most sophisticated use of robotics, for example, is in the area of surgery. Robots are used to perform procedures with more precision and less invasiveness. The surgeon uses a console to control the instruments.
This appears to be Life Healthcare CEO Peter Wharton-Hood’s thinking, that AI will be an aid or tool for human healthcare professionals to do their jobs, faster, more efficient and perhaps at reduced cost. He draws a parallel between healthcare and aviation.
“AI and the use of computers in airlines... if you got into an aeroplane to fly to London and the announcement to the passengers was ‘well today the pilot is not present but you’ll be flown to London by a computer’ you’d get off the plane,” he said.
According to the Future Healthcare Journal: AI can enable healthcare systems to achieve their “quadruple aim” by “democratising and standardising a future of connected and AI augmented care, precision diagnostics, precision therapeutics and, ultimately, precision medicine”.
Research in the application of AI healthcare continues to develop rapidly, with potential use cases being demonstrated across the sector — for both physical and mental health — including drug discovery, virtual clinical consultation, disease diagnosis, prognosis, medication management and health monitoring.
“AI is not going to replace doctors and a robot cannot replace a nurse. In the context of health care, it’s hands on from nurses [and doctors] that heals patients,” Wharton-Hood said.
“To my mind, the knowledge base available in AI will help doctors the same way that computers help pilots, but you are not going to replace the doctor and you’re not going to replace the nurse. They’ve been here since Florence Nightingale’s times and they will be here forever.”
In its 2024 annual report, Life Healthcare noted that the sector was “undergoing significant digital transformation spurred by technological breakthroughs and shifting consumer expectations”.
It said “innovation continues to accelerate” and recent strides in AI are pushing this change, highlighting the rapid growth of remote monitoring devices, wearables and enhanced data storage and analysis capabilities that are boosting the efficiency and scope of digital healthcare services.
Despite the many advancements, there are some risks to weigh up. The Mayo Clinic points out that if not properly trained, AI can lead to bias and discrimination.
For example, “if AI is trained on electronic health records, it is building only on people that can access healthcare and is perpetuating any human bias captured within the records”.
Second, “AI chatbots can generate medical advice that is misleading or false, which is why there’s a need for effectively regulating their use”.
This comes a few weeks after Life Healthcare signed a $750m (R13.9bn) deal to sell its Life Molecular Imaging (LMI) to Lantheus Radiopharmaceuticals UK, with the proceeds set to be returned to shareholders.
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