IWS, a Business and Technology Consulting company, stands out in its strategy
IWS Consulting, a young and dynamic company that operates successfully in the ICT market, is at the forefront of investments in Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence – says CEO Ettore Sangermano – not forgetting to make the most of people and business. Below the General Manager Andrea Capitani explains the applicability on projects dedicated to pharma and healthcare.
Is artificial intelligence applicable in the medical field?
Yes, absolutely, indeed I believe that the health field is among the most interesting not only for the complexity but also for the ethical implications that the same can have. To date, there are already many applications: from the identification of tumors, to their treatment, to the identification of primary and secondary risks but also telemedicine.
What is the new challenge for healthcare?
The Italian national health system is a source of pride at an international level, today it is severely tested by the public finances, by a crisis that continues. To be able to maintain an excellent system with reduced resources, it is necessary to optimize, cut waste, speed up processes, make everything more streamlined in order to adapt to the needs of patients and at the same time to the needs of hospital staff. In two words: machine learning.
An immediate challenge? What is boiling in your pot?
Very. Let’s talk about Triage and bed management. In part it seems an almost futuristic vision, but it is the present: imagine arriving at the emergency room and being taken care of immediately or having a complete screening in a very short time; the doctor is helped by the machines to rule out possible risks possibly linked to our particular and unique physical condition. He does it as if he has always followed us and always known us. More. If hospitalization is necessary, the search for the bed will be instantaneous and will not require long waits. The computer will immediately identify where we will be located and have already planned the presence of an ambulance for the possible transfer. All this only and exclusively with a wise and concrete use of the data that hospitals have available today. Artificial intelligence, in the variation of Machine Learning (i.e. machines capable of learning on their own based on previous results), is the tool that best allows you to predict future needs, the number of people in the emergency room, the type of cases combining them with the personal history of each of us so as to give timely and tailored answers. Minimize errors, improve service, cancel waste.
And the epidemics?
I would like to be optimistic: eradicate! Maybe too much, but artificial intelligence can really help us a lot. I start from this observation, today the categories at risk are the elderly and children. Very general, very broad categories, protecting them completely is expensive but also difficult. But the question we should ask is: who are we leaving behind? What category are we forgetting? Artificial intelligence can help us not only to exclude the most robust bands among those at risk, but also to identify almost punctually the people who may need pharmacological help even before an epidemic breaks out.
