Healthcare will see rapid growth of generative artificial intelligence in the next 12 to 18 months, and hospitals and health systems need to be prepared, according to Darrell Bodnar, CIO of Berlin, N.H.-based North Country Healthcare.
"Healthcare organizations need to prepare now and have a sound strategy as well as a documented road map for adoption," Mr. Bodnar told Becker's.
Mr. Bodnar said healthcare organizations traditionally lag other industries when it comes to adopting new technologies, and that generative AI is no different.
But, if healthcare organizations create a framework and guidelines including policies, procedures and controls for the technology, they should be able to "move forward with generative AI tools," according to Mr. Bodnar.
"There are some very quick wins with minimal risk for really any industry," he said. "Low-risk benefits in the healthcare industry include office automation, document creation, policy development, marketing initiatives, summarization of data, media development, training and education materials, and just about any administrative task."
He said when it comes to generative AI being involved in tasks such as the creation of patient letters and discharge instructions, specific guidelines need to be created and should not include protected health information.
"Clinical use beyond that needs to proceed cautiously with security, privacy and compliance top of mind," he said. "I feel this is where most healthcare organizations are waiting for the trusted development of the technology through their established business partners like EMR vendors, healthcare software and technology developers, and large technology partners like Microsoft and Google."
According to a Bain & Co. survey, 75 percent of health system executives believe generative AI has reached a turning point in the healthcare industry, but only 6 percent reported having a generative AI strategy for their organization.