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Augmented Intelligences
Return to all trendsWhat is it?
AI’s true promise lies in augmenting human cognitive tasks—learning, reasoning, problem-solving, and creativity—rather than merely automating routine jobs. While current AI applications often focus on eliminating low-value tasks, such as scheduling or note-taking, this narrow view overlooks AI’s potential to enhance human intelligence and creativity.
AI’s role should not be confined to routine tasks. History has shown that automation does not always reduce workload. Instead, AI can enhance human capabilities, making clinicians more insightful and creative, and accelerating the journey from novice to expert.
It can fundamentally transform healthcare by:
- Predicting and preventing health issues before they arise.
- Enhancing diagnostics with unprecedented speed and accuracy.
- Prioritizing healthcare delivery and resource management across systems.
- Continuously tracking and optimizing patient care and treatment plans.
AI has the potential to deliver on the “social contract of data” by maximizing the value of collected health data. It can provide real-time analyses, empowering decision-makers and integrating human and machine thinking for more effective healthcare.
In essence, AI should be at the core, not the periphery, of tomorrow’s healthcare systems, driving profound improvements in patient care, diagnostics, and healthcare delivery.

Opportunities for impact
The potential impact of AI across the core functions of the health system and its operations are extensive, touching almost every major element of the system.
Here are some illustrative applications and possibilities for AI across some of the key functions of the health system, using the system impact framework discussed in the report on page 16.

Patient care & wellbeing
AI models can predict disease outbreaks and progression, enabling proactive care and preventive measures. This helps in early intervention, redesng th nincidence of severe disease, and improves overall population health.
AI can assess patient risks, suggesting preventive actions to reduce the likelihood of developing serious conditions. This enhances patient safety, prevents complications, and lowers healthcare costs by avoiding emergency situations.
AI can analyse epidemiological data to identify trends and potential health threats, aiding public health planning and interventions. This supports timely public health responses, improves resource allocation, and enhances community health outcomes.
AI can analyse patient data and provide personalised educational content to patients on self-care and device usage through interactive apps and virtual assistants, improving their understanding and engagement in their own care. This empowers patients, enhances health literacy, improves chronic disease management and supports better health outcomes through informed decision-making.
AI algorithms can analyse medical images quickly and accurately, assisting radiologists and other clinical professionals in diagnosing conditions more efficiently and accurately. This reduces the workload on clinicians, decreases human error, and speeds up diagnosis time for patients.
AI can analyse laboratory results to detect patterns and anomalies, helping lab technicians and clinicians diagnose diseases faster. This improves diagnostic accuracy, reduces turnaround time for lab results, and enhances patient care.
AI can support clinicians by providing diagnostic suggestions and identifying potential issues based on patient data. This improves diagnostic accuracy, reduces diagnostic errors, and enhances clinical decision-making.
System Infrastructure
AI can optimise resource allocation by predicting patient admission rates and suggesting efficient staffing and bed management strategies. This improves hospital efficiency, reduces waiting times, and ensures better patient care through optimal resource utilisation.
AI automates scheduling, optimising patient flow and reducing administrative burdens. This enhances patient satisfaction, reduces no-shows, and improves the overall efficiency of healthcare delivery.
AI can forecast demand for medical supplies, maintaining optimal inventory levels and reducing waste. This ensures the timely availability of necessary supplies, reduces costs, and improves the overall efficiency of the healthcare supply chain.
AI enhances data security by monitoring for breaches and ensuring compliance with data protection regulations. This protects patient privacy, builds trust in the healthcare system, and ensures compliance with legal requirements.
AI can automate EHR management, ensuring records are up-to-date and reducing manual entry errors. This improves data accuracy, enhances clinical workflows, and ensures clinicians have access to comprehensive patient information for better care.
AI can deliver personalised training modules and continuous education, helping healthcare professionals stay current with medical advancements. This enhances professional development, improves clinical skills, and ensures high standards of patient care.
Who's doing it
Actions 2024-2025
As such, we recommend that actors from across the health and technology ecosystems disproportionately focus in 2024-25 on setting the foundations, activating and putting in place building blocks across several domains of the system to scope, position for, and experiment in AI deployments in key strategic areas.
Healthcare providers
- Establish partnerships to drive AI innovation and implementation.
- Define specific goals, desired impacts, and assess AI’s appropriateness for specified challenges.
- Consider and resource human oversight and supplementary decisions to mitigate risks of AI application.
- Prioritise AI initiatives that enhance patient safety and health outcomes.
- Build and maintain robust data pipelines, warehouses and data management systems to ensure high-quality, structured health and other data for AI training and operation.
- Implement advanced cybersecurity protocols and conduct regular audits to protect sensitive health data.
- Standardise data formats and collaborate to enhance data interoperability and streamline AI integration.
- Invest in technology professionals with the skills to distinguish between AI tools that are fit for purpose and those that are mere hype.
- Develop health specific training in AI management for technology professionals.
- Start with narrow AI applications to health settings (e.g., imaging analysis, sepsis detection, operational domains).
- Foster collaboration between technology companies and healthcare providers to develop AI tools tailored to specific clinical and operational needs.
- Implement strategies to identify and mitigate biases in AI models and ensure transparency.
- Create platforms for sharing best practices and lessons learned from AI implementations
- Work with tech developers to provide clinical insights and advocate for necessary resources and support.
- Actively explore use of existing AI tools in diagnostics, treatment planning, and patient monitoring.
Technologists
- Establish partnerships to drive AI innovation and implementation.
- Define specific goals, desired impacts, and assess AI’s appropriateness for specified challenges.
- Consider and resource human oversight and supplementary decisions to mitigate risks of AI application.
- Prioritise AI initiatives that enhance patient safety and health outcomes.
- Build and maintain robust data pipelines, warehouses and data management systems to ensure high-quality, structured health and other data for AI training and operation.
- Implement advanced cybersecurity protocols and conduct regular audits to protect sensitive health data.
- Standardise data formats and collaborate to enhance data interoperability and streamline AI integration.
- Invest in technology professionals with the skills to distinguish between AI tools that are fit for purpose and those that are mere hype.
- Develop health specific training in AI management for technology professionals.
- Start with narrow AI applications to health settings (e.g., imaging analysis, sepsis detection, operational domains).
- Foster collaboration between technology companies and healthcare providers to develop AI tools tailored to specific clinical and operational needs.
- Implement strategies to identify and mitigate biases in AI models and ensure transparency.
- Create platforms for sharing best practices and lessons learned from AI implementations
- Work with tech developers to provide clinical insights and advocate for necessary resources and support.
- Actively explore use of existing AI tools in diagnostics, treatment planning, and patient monitoring.
Government & Policy Makers
- Strengthen regulations around data privacy and security to protect patient information.
- Develop and enforce AI use standards in healthcare to ensure safety, efficacy, and ethical use.
- Provide funding and incentives for AI research and development in healthcare.
- Establish partnerships to drive AI innovation and implementation.
- Define specific goals, desired impacts, and assess AI’s appropriateness for specified challenges.
- Consider and resource human oversight and supplementary decisions to mitigate risks of AI application.
- Prioritise AI initiatives that enhance patient safety and health outcomes.
- Start with narrow AI applications to health settings (e.g., imaging analysis, sepsis detection, operational domains).
- Foster collaboration between technology companies and healthcare providers to develop AI tools tailored to specific clinical and operational needs.
- Implement strategies to identify and mitigate biases in AI models and ensure transparency.
- Create platforms for sharing best practices and lessons learned from AI implementations
- Work with tech developers to provide clinical insights and advocate for necessary resources and support.
- Actively explore use of existing AI tools in diagnostics, treatment planning, and patient monitoring.
Researchers & Universities
- Establish partnerships to drive AI innovation and implementation.
- Define specific goals, desired impacts, and assess AI’s appropriateness for specified challenges.
- Consider and resource human oversight and supplementary decisions to mitigate risks of AI application.
- Prioritise AI initiatives that enhance patient safety and health outcomes.
- Invest in technology professionals with the skills to distinguish between AI tools that are fit for purpose and those that are mere hype.
- Develop health specific training in AI management for technology professionals.
- Start with narrow AI applications to health settings (e.g., imaging analysis, sepsis detection, operational domains).
- Foster collaboration between technology companies and healthcare providers to develop AI tools tailored to specific clinical and operational needs.
- Implement strategies to identify and mitigate biases in AI models and ensure transparency.
- Create platforms for sharing best practices and lessons learned from AI implementations
- Work with tech developers to provide clinical insights and advocate for necessary resources and support.
- Actively explore use of existing AI tools in diagnostics, treatment planning, and patient monitoring.
Simulation and Simulacra
As the boundary between the physical and digital worlds fades, new technologies are transforming how we interact with reality, particularly in healthcare. Extended Reality (XR), digital twins, and 3D printing are at the forefront of this change, allowing us to experiment, innovate, and enhance care without the constraints of the physical world.
Remote Patient Care
Remote Patient Care (RPC) leverages modern communication technologies and sensors to deliver healthcare services when the patient and provider are not in the same physical space. While the concept isn’t new, recent technological advancements have made RPC more effective, allowing patients to receive hospital-level care from the comfort of their homes.
Adaptability and Dynamism
Adaptability in health refers to the creation of flexible systems designed to anticipate and respond to future challenges. Unlike specific technologies applied to healthcare, adaptability is a system-wide capability made possible by technology, allowing healthcare systems to adjust seamlessly to changing demands and stressors.
Harnessing Biotechnology Breakthroughs
Throughout history, healthcare has advanced through groundbreaking scientific discoveries, such as antibiotics, DNA structure, and vaccines. These innovations have dramatically improved health outcomes and set the stage for modern advancements in biotech and deep science.


