There is a growing demand for health care in Northwest Arkansas and the River Valley. Speakers at a conference in Fayetteville believe artificial intelligence could help.
On Nov. 2, the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement (ACHI) hosted a conversation about the current state of health care in Arkansas and where it’s headed.
Keynote speaker Shawn DuBravac said health care is becoming more digitized in the form of virtual consultations, remote monitoring, and telemedicine.
DuBravac said health care providers are now asking, “What gets turned over to software and robots?” “What should be maintained by humans?” “How do we maintain the relationship between care providers and their patients?”
DuBravac said as more people turn to health care, AI could help broaden services.
However, he noted the risk of missing care or service to households who don’t have high-speed internet access.
Dr. Joseph Thompson, the president and CEO of ACHI, said they are working with health care providers to address where specialists are needed.
Thompson said Arkansas continues to face a public health emergency around opioid abuse, high rates of maternal and infant mortality, and financing health care.
“We lead the nation in maternal and infant mortality. These are issues that are signal indicators of failures in the system.” Thompson said.
When addressing labor shortages, Thompson noted the health care workforce is in “a recovery period after COVID-19, and they’re reassessing what lifestyle, environment, and work pace they want to have.”
