With its many tech giants, it is not surprising that China has been experimenting with incorporating new technologies into medicine. Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is currently working on using AI and cloud systems to resolve an array of issues in healthcare, from lack of doctors to ambulances hitting traffic. They have created an AI ambulance that is capable of navigating the crowded streets of China, a technology that could expedite emergency medical response time.
Alibaba is also using its technology in a Shanghai hospital, using data to predict how busy they will be with patients, and to allot doctors accordingly. They are also working with AI assisted diagnosis in the Zhejiang province, with the end goal of automated identification of pathology from medical images. This innovation would not only be able to address lack of doctors, but it would save existing physicians time as well.
Technology has also been addressing issues associated with distance between urban hospitals and rural patients. WeChat is a social media platform that offers patients with chronic diseases consultations with physicians for remote medical advice. This system is currently being used by DXY, one of China’s largest online network for doctors. Rogier Janssens, general manager of Germany’s Merck KGaA’s biopharma branch in China, claims that integrating smartphones into healthcare would streamline primary care and eliminate costs.
“There are hundreds of millions of people who still go without care for relatively simple diseases.” -Rogier Janssens
Predictably, there is a considerable amount of wealth involved as tech companies permeate the medical industry. WeDoctor, a company focused on offering online medical services, recently raised $500 million, bringing them to a valuation of $5.5 billion. A similar company called Ping An Good Doctor earned $1.1 billion with their IPO this year.
Source: Channel News Asia
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