Technology
Balancing Risk and Reward in Healthcare AI
In 1976, U.S. health officials launched an unprecedented national vaccination campaign against a newly identified swine flu strain at Fort Dix, New Jersey. Fearful of a pandemic, the federal government quickly vaccinated millions. However, the rapid deployment—driven...
Healthcare AI: Privacy and Cybersecurity
In 1928, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis famously defined privacy as "the right to be let alone." His warning arose during a time when wiretaps threatened the sanctity of private conversations. Nearly a century later, Brandeis's concerns have only...
AI’s Impact on Healthcare Jobs
In 1785, Edmund Cartwright introduced the power loom, a revolutionary invention that mechanized textile production. At first, skilled weavers fiercely resisted the change, fearing for their livelihoods. Yet by 1850, the mechanization Cartwright initiated had created...
AI and the Future Economics of Patient Care
In 1913, Henry Ford changed the world. By introducing the moving assembly line at Ford Motor Company, he slashed production time for the Model T from 12 hours to just 93 minutes. Ford's innovation made automobiles affordable for ordinary Americans and revolutionized...
Can AI Make Healthcare Safer and More Reliable?
In 1904, Dr. Ernest Amory Codman began advocating for a radical idea: healthcare institutions should track every patient's outcome to understand whether treatments were successful. His “End Result System” was the first structured attempt to evaluate healthcare...
How AI Drives Discovery: Faster Trials, Smarter Insights
In 1747, aboard the HMS Salisbury, Scottish physician James Lind conducted what is now recognized as the first controlled clinical trial. Faced with the deadly scourge of scurvy among sailors, Lind divided twelve afflicted crew members into pairs, administering...
Why Virtual Assistants Belong in Healthcare
In 1966, Joseph Weizenbaum of MIT developed ELIZA, one of the first computer programs to mimic human conversation. Though primitive by today's standards, ELIZA simulated a Rogerian psychotherapist using scripted prompts to reflect user input. It was a groundbreaking...
AI Should Augment, Not Replace, Human Expertise
In 1816, René Laennec revolutionized medicine with the invention of the stethoscope, enabling physicians to listen to internal body sounds with greater clarity while maintaining patient modesty. This simple tool was a breakthrough—not because it replaced the...
AI Is Transforming Healthcare Delivery: Are You Ready?
In 1954, Dr. Homer Warner pioneered the use of computers in cardiology at LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City, demonstrating that technology could assist clinicians in decision-making by generating alerts, reminders, and recommendations. Seven decades later, artificial...