Event

The lecture, which was in collaboration with the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, was on the theme: “Harnessing generative AI in medical education: Opportunities for the future of learning”.

Other speakers, who joined the event through Zoom, were Associate Professor, Temerly Faculty of Medicine, Canada, Dr Heather Macneill; an associate Professor of Medical Informatics, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman, Dr Ken Masters, and a Physician Programme Advisor, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, Dr Sofia Valanci-Aroesty.

“AI is doing a lot of work in stroke, and it can help us to pick up stroke faster. A lot of people may not know what is wrong with them, but they may have symptoms of a stroke.

“By just taking a picture of somebody's face alone and sending it to your ChatGPT can tell you whether the person has something that is likely to be a stroke,” Dr Acquah further said.

He said when it came to scans to confirm strokes, AI through ChatGPT could interpret them by writing a report that even a layperson could understand. 

Significance of AI

Additionally, Dr Acquah said AI could predict a stroke or make the diagnosis quickly in the scan room and inform or alert doctors so that they prioritise cases and attend to them faster, adding that for certain types of strokes, such as ischemic strokes, if they were able to work fast within the first six hours, sometimes total recovery could be achieved.

He said, considering the benefits AI had on medical practice, it was important for all health professionals to be knowledgeable about it, adding that there was a need to train health workers, including ambulance drivers, on its use.

For lay people, Dr Acquah said AI could help them prevent stroke through their smart watches, which could monitor their parameters and advise them if their BP was going up or not.

Breast cancer

The lecturer said in relation to breast cancer, more breakthroughs had been conferred onto AI, such as the ability to detect bone marrow mass, breast lesions, and maternal breast lesions, five years before they become visible to the human eye.

The other speakers touched on generative AI in medical education, opportunities for the future of learning and ethical concerns about it.

The Vice-President, Division of Surgeons of the College, Professor Pius Agbenorku, said the essence of the theme was to broaden understanding of emerging trends and exchange ideas on the evolving intersection of technology and medical education.

He expressed the determination of the college to use cutting-edge technology to train its students in order that its products would be able to meet the healthcare needs of the country.

For his part, the college President, Prof.  Samuel Debrah, said the fact that this was the second time the college was visiting the topic of artificial intelligence signified that AI was very crucial now and in the future, not only in medicine but in all fields of human endeavour.