Google Cloud division, released a new artificial intelligence (AI)–powered search feature that helps healthcare professionals quickly extract accurate clinical information from different types of medical records.
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The healthcare industry is home to a wealth of valuable information and data, but it can be difficult for clinicians to find it because it’s often stored through multiple systems and formats. Instead, a new search tool released today by Google Cloud will allow physicians to pull information from clinical records, scanned documents, and electronic health records so they can access it all in one place.
Google says the new feature will ultimately save healthcare professionals a lot of time and effort. Lisa O’Malley, senior director of product management for artificial intelligence at Google Cloud, said in a press interview, “The new tool eliminates frustration for clinicians. In addition to saving time, the new tool ensures they can find answers more easily.”
For example, if physicians want to understand a patient’s medical history, they no longer need to read their notes, faxes and electronic health records individually. Instead, they can search for questions such as “What medications have this patient taken in the last 12 months?” and see the information in one place.
O’Malley also says Google’s new search feature can be used for other key applications, such as applying the right billing codes and determining whether a patient meets the criteria for enrolling in a clinical trial.
Moreover, the new feature can also cite and link to the original source of the information, which will come directly from the organization’s internal data. This helps alleviate clinicians’ concerns about the potential for AI to produce phantom or inaccurate information.
The search function would be especially valuable to healthcare professionals, who are already burdened with staff shortages and a staggering amount of paperwork.
A 2016 study funded by the American Medical Association (AMA) found that for every hour a doctor spends with a patient, he or she spends an additional two hours on administrative tasks. Physicians also tend to spend an extra hour or two doing paperwork outside of work hours, which is usually their sleep time, the study said.
A survey by Medscape, a search platform for medical professionals, in January of this year showed that in 2022, 53% of doctors reported they felt exhausted, up from 42% in 2018.
With the new search feature, Google hopes to reduce the amount of time clinicians spend digging through additional records and databases.
The new feature, dubbed “Vertex AI Search,” builds on Google’s existing healthcare APIs and healthcare data engine offerings, and will be available to health and life sciences organizations through Google’s Vertex AI Search platform. Companies in other industries, meanwhile, can already use the platform to search across public websites, documents and other databases.
Starting today, customers can sign up for early access to Vertex AI Search for the healthcare and life sciences industries, a feature Google Cloud has been testing with health organizations such as the Mayo Clinic, Hackensack Meridian Health and Highmark Health.
