A New Approach to Augmented Intelligence in Medicine
NUCATS’ Center for Data Science and Informatics becomes Center for Biomedical Informatics and Data Science as I.AIM launches
A stethoscope isn’t traditionally thought of as augmented intelligence for physicians, but Abel Kho, MD, argues it’s a tool that has made physicians more effective and thus, augmented physicians deliver better patient care. Wearable technology, AI-assisted imaging, smart stethoscopes, digital apps and machine learning can similarly transform the practice of medicine — but Kho says medical professionals and biomedical scientists are critically needed to help shape the development of these next-generation biomedical tools.
To that end, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine has established a new Institute for Augmented Intelligence in Medicine (I.AIM), with the goal of augmenting human expertise with computational methods to advance the science of human health. The new institute builds on the work of numerous faculty across Northwestern and unifies programs in artificial intelligence in medicine, genetic analysis, deep phenotyping, ethics and data science.
The former Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences (NUCATS) Institute’s Center for Data Science and Informatics has become the Center for Biomedical Informatics and Data Science (CBIDS), of one I.AIM’s six founding center and a shared entity between NUCATS and I.AIM.
“Housing an institute in AI within a medical school means we are solely and uniquely focused on applying AI to improve and transform human health.” said Kho, a NUCATS member and director of I.AIM. “We are guided by our ‘patients first’ mission and anchored by a commitment to responsible, ethical and open science.”
With Kho, an associate professor of Medicine in the Division of General Internal Medicine and Geriatrics, at the helm, the new institute will bring together research, education and sustainable innovation, offering opportunities for faculty, students and trainees, as well as collaborations with other Northwestern schools including the McCormick School of Engineering, Kellogg School of Management and Pritzker Law School.
The I.AIM demonstrates the collaborative nature of Northwestern as whole in the pursuit of high-impact science. As an investigator, it sends a strong signal to me that spending the time to work across our large, multidisciplinary institution is applauded and a worthwhile endeavor.”
“The I.AIM demonstrates the collaborative nature of Northwestern as whole in the pursuit of high-impact science,” said Nicholas Soulakis, PhD, assistant professor of Preventive Medicine (Health and Biomedical Informatics), Medical Social Sciences and Preventive Medicine (Epidemiology), and NUCATS Director of Data Science Services. “As an investigator, it sends a strong signal to me that spending the time to work across our large, multidisciplinary institution is applauded and a worthwhile endeavor.”
The institute’s central data team will be led by NUCATS members: I.AIM Chief AI Officer Yuan Luo, PhD, an associate professor of Preventive Medicine and at the McCormick School of Engineering; Chief Data Engineer Mozziyar Etemadi, MD, PhD, a research assistant professor at the McCormick School of Engineering and of Anesthesiology at Feinberg; I.AIM Chief Informatics Officer Firas Wehbe, MD, PhD, Feinberg’s chief research informatics officer and associate professor of Preventive Medicine and of Pathology and director of NUCATS’ Applied Research Informatics Group; and I.AIM Chief Ethics Officer Kelly Michelson, MD, MPH, director of the Institute for Public Health and Medicine’s Center for Bioethics and Medical Humanities and the Julia and David Uihlein Professor of Bioethics and Medical Humanities.
“The I.AIM will serve as a connecting point for breakthrough discoveries and the patients they serve,” said Justin Starren, MD, PhD, FACMI, CBIDS director, chief of the Division of Health and Biomedical Informatics in the Department of Preventive Medicine and deputy director of NUCATS. “With CIBIDS positioned as a key driver in this initiative, we will be able to play a critical role in a set of ambitiously creative projects by linking world-class collaborators with exceptional resources.”
Faculty supporting the CBIDS research mission include Luo, Wehbe, and Soulakis, as well as Daniel Schneider, who leads the Northwestern Medicine Enterprise Data Warehouse Research Data Analytics team.
