GE HealthCare has partnered with Mass General Brigham to co-develop a new artificial intelligence algorithm for improving imaging throughput, the two announced Wednesday.
The Radiology Operations Module, or ROM, aims to help optimize scheduling, reduce costs and free up providers from time spent on burdensome administrative work. Their efforts are focused on “missed care opportunities,” when a patient fails to show up for an appointment, arrives tardy or does not schedule necessary follow-up imaging.
ROM helps Mass General to predict such hiccups, helping the organization to build flexibility into its scheduling, streamline operations, bolster patient satisfaction and better accommodate unscheduled imaging exams. GE HealthCare claims the algorithm was able to predict missed care opportunities at rates of up to 96%, “with limited false positives.”
“The strategic use of AI offers great potential for the future of healthcare and we’re proud to be at the forefront of the movement,” Keith Dreyer, DO, PhD, Mass General Brigham’s chief data science officer, said in a Sept. 6 announcement from GE HealthCare. This technology has the potential to reduce burnout and allow physicians to spend more time with patients, which may ultimately lead to better outcomes.”
ROM was developed as part of a 10-year partnership pact signed by the two organizations in 2017. GE HealthCare and Mass General said they’re working together to develop further uses for AI in improving operations.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.