“AI Can Make Access to Healthcare Affordable”
Artificial intelligence has the potential to make healthcare more accessible, affordable and efficient while transforming medical research and patient care, renowned gastroenterologist D. Nageshwar Reddy said while delivering the 16th Basic Day Lecture at the ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education here on Friday.
He said artificial intelligence should be seen as a tool to augment rather than replace healthcare professionals to improve diagnosis, treatment, education and patient care.
According to Dr. Reddy, chairman of the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology, AI is changing drug discovery, radiology, telemedicine, precision medicine, predictive medicine, genomics, cancer detection, dermatology and remote patient monitoring.
Noting that artificial intelligence has greatly shortened the drug discovery process, reducing timelines from decades to a few years, he also noted that the next decade will witness a major transformation in pharmaceutical research.
“AI won’t replace doctors, but doctors who know how to use AI will replace those who don’t,” he said, referring to the slow adoption of artificial intelligence among doctors.
In his talk, he shared examples of AI initiatives such as a medical information robotic assistant and iSAVE, an early warning system that continuously monitors a patient’s critical parameters and alerts doctors.
He expressed views that the role of artificial intelligence can address the growing burden of fatty liver disease in the country by enabling affordable screening using a few simple clinical parameters instead of expensive diagnostic tests; and in clinical documentation systems and CT image analysis.
Chancellor, ICFAI, C. Rangarajan noted that artificial intelligence is still in its infancy and its long-term impact is yet to be seen. While AI is changing the way students learn and teachers teach, he cautioned that it must be used responsibly, recognizing both its enormous potential and its limitations.
Published – 04 Jul 2026 0:30 IST