Some health systems in poorer countries are leveraging supply chain technology to get patients the care they need, and it could soon be used in the U.S. too, reported MIT Technology Review March 9.
Health organizations in low and middle income countries have realized that many of their problems around testing, diagnosis and access to equipment look similar to supply chain problems.
"Why is it that Coca-Cola can deliver ice-cold cola to some of the most remote places in the world but we can't do something similar in health care?" asked John Sargent, MD, co-founder of BroadReach Group, a group that used AI to manage HIV care and treatment.
Organizations are using machine learning algorithms to create digital twins, a digital model of a real-world problem, that are used by supply chain managers to work out how medical resources can be allocated and distributed across various scenarios.
Now BroadReach is looking to apply its simulation software to the U.S., where it has already partnered with four healthcare organizations in pilot projects.
"Right around the time COVID hit we sort of woke up to realize that a lot of quote-unquote developed-world health systems weren't that great, and large swaths of the population were being left behind," Dr. Sargent told the Review.