Essay Sample on Artificial intelligence in the Medical Field

As of 2016, healthcare AI projects attracted more investment than AI projects within any other sector of the global economy. A hundred years before today, no one imagined that humans would develop the capacity to program machines to perform medical procedures with a high level of accuracy and detailed precision as is the case right now. The world is quietly experiencing an artificial intelligence revolution in the healthcare sector. This will prove crucial in the age of medical staff shortages, expanding and aging populations, and during the coming age of austerity. With improvements in technologies, the cost of running artificial intelligence is gradually declining and leaders in healthcare are searching for new means of efficiency. In fact chances are that future surgeons will be accompanied by artificial intelligence assistants in the theatres. Although computer systems malfunction sometimes and lead to loses, proper innovation and implementation of artificial intelligence promises the benefits of remarkable artificial intelligence, pinpoint precision and advanced algorithms which is what the medical field of the future needs to make the necessary improvements in healthcare quality and delivery.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

Artificial intelligence surgical assistants have come to change the traditional trajectory of medical practice by improving the quality, accuracy, and precision of surgical procedures. Artificial intelligence surgery offers many benefits to patients and these include shorter periods of hospitalization, reduced discomfort and pain, faster time for recovery and return to normal life, reduced risk of infection due to smaller incision, reduced loss of blood and the need for transfusion and minimal scarring (Drasin, Dutson and Gracia 370). Moreover, surgeons stand a better chance when using artificial intelligence as assistants during surgery because of improved visualization, enhanced dexterity, and greater precision. Therefore, the use of artificial intelligence is an essential advantage for better surgeries and high-quality outcomes.

The use of artificial intelligence in the dispensing unit of pharmacy offers the greatest advantage in terms of speed and accuracy and these are two essential features that are very important for clinicians and pharmacists. Not only do automated dispensing systems have the benefits of streamlining pharmacy operations, improving the flow of data and reportage along the way but they also have great economic and safety benefits in the long run (Gonzalez, Alonso and Vilaplana 30). Modern automated dispensing systems have advanced to the degree that they can handle highly viscous material, liquids, and even powders. They can do this with higher speed, accuracy and precision compared to how they used to do in the past. Before the arrival of these systems, pharmacists had to spend most of their time filling up prescriptions by hand but that is not the case anymore because machines have not been assigned the task of automatically filling in prescriptions and dispensing drugs to patients. This saves time, improves efficiency and purpose in the long run.

Advancements in technologies and innovations must be modeled to match the increase in the complexity of medical conditions and diseases. The present medical field is facing an upsurge in the number of complex cases such as Ebola Virus and antibiotic-resistant bacteria and hence the need for more healthcare facilities to use artificial intelligence to clean and disinfect surfaces (Cox). Keeping medical facilities clean and beyond any reasonable doubt is perfectly standard practice and every health facility has the duty to ensure this in order to restrict the outbreak and spread of infections. However cleanliness and disinfection are a task that has always been done by human labor force that has in some instances been infected or at the risk of infection. To begin with, this is costly for many health care organizations that have to care about the health and wellbeing of their staff as well as patient population (Cox). One other issue that accrues from manual cleaning is the inability to know whether or not an area has been cleaned. Therefore, application of artificial intelligence in the cleaning and sanitation of hospital equipment is the right way to go for the future of the healthcare industry.

High dedication capabilities in medical artificial intelligence facilities have made it possible for physicians to use robots to transport meals, medications, and supplies to patients as well as other staff within the medical facilities. The healthcare industry has been one of the hardest hit when it comes to understaffing and inadequate facilities (Hayes). The United States Bureau of Labor statics posits that the number of nursing jobs required in the US will increase by 15 percent by the year 2026. This means that the ratio of nurses to patients will depreciate drastically and the US will be in need of more nurses. The situation is already wanting at the moment with fewer and fewer graduates taking up nursing courses due to personal preferences and the trend is likely to remain the same for a long time into the future. The transportation of medical supplies, medications, and food between patients, doctors, and the physicians is essential because it allows for maximum communication between the three parties and this helps in speeding up the health delivery process. Most of the machines are created to have a high level of dedication to the facility for ease of navigation throughout the hospital.

Many opponents to the use of medical artificial intelligence cite the high cost of hiring such machines as the main disadvantage and the fact that it is likely to make surgeries more costly. The use of these machines in the United States and in other parts of the world is on the rise regardless even though there is evidence that questions its cost and effectiveness. Regardless of the fears of costs and effectiveness however, critics do not dispute the fact that the procedures are futuristic, efficient and necessary in the disruptive future of the medical field and innovation. Moreover, they do not dispute the fact that the future is marred with complexities and medical complexions that are going to require the input of computer technologies to innovate and deliver quality services. Finally, the medical field is highly unpredictable in terms of the kinds of challenges expected in the future. Therefore, as opposed to criticizing the new innovations and technologies of computer artificial intelligence, the field of medicine is better placed to conduct more research into the field of medical artificial intelligence to establish the various loopholes, fix them and ensure the safe and streamlined delivery of the new artificial intelligence technologies.

Overall, although computer systems malfunction and lead to loses, proper innovation and implementation of artificial intelligence promises the benefits of remarkable artificial intelligence, pinpoint precision and advanced algorithms which is what the medical field of the future needs to make the necessary improvements in healthcare quality and delivery. The increase in medical complexities like the outbreak of Ebola calls for the need for even tighter regulations concerning cleanliness and sanitation. There is an expected increase in the patient population in the near future and a reduction in the number of hospital staff and this calls for machine assistance for the limited remaining number of nurses to save them from overworking and fatigue. Finally, the benefits of exactitude, accurateness, shorter hospitalization and healing times far outweigh the risks involved in using artificial intelligence for healthcare procedures.

Works Cited

Cox, Laura. Hospital robot preventing the spread of disease. 12 September 2017. <https://disruptionhub.com/artificial intelligence -technology-keeping-safe/>.

Drasin, Todd, Erik Dutson, and Carlos Gracia. "Use of an artificial intelligence system as surgical first assistant in advanced laparoscopic surgery." Journal of the American College of Surgeons 199.3 (2014): 368-373.

Gonzalez, Rodriguez, et al. "Artificial intelligence dispensing improves patient safety, inventory management, and staff satisfaction in an outpatient hospital pharmacy." NCBI 25.1 (2019): 28-35.

Hayes, Tim. Hospitals Are Using Robots to Aid Nurses. 2019. <https://www.healthcarepackaging.com/article/hospitals-are-using-robots-aid-nurses>.