Using advanced artificial intelligence, a new Precision Analytics Program helps to predict and plan for Alberta’s future cancer care needs.
Alberta’s new first-of-its-kind Precision Analytics Program uses advanced artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze complex data, identify challenges and provide insights to improve cancer care. By interpreting patterns and connections, the program uses evidence-based data to support decision making that can lead to healthcare improvements.
“Analytics and AI are increasingly changing our ability to assess vast amounts of information, making it interpretable and actionable — expanding opportunities to support the healthcare system,” says Dr. Lorraine Shack, director of cancer advanced analytics for Cancer Care Alberta, which oversees the Precision Analytics Program.
Shack is a 2024 recipient of the AMS-Fitzgerald Fellowship in AI and Human-Centered Leadership, which aims to transform healthcare through the integration of AI. The highly competitive fellowship enables recipients, like Shack, to explore opportunities for system-wide improvements in the health system and implement AI to target them.
A key focus area of the Precision Analytics Program is addressing wait times for patients facing cancer. Using advanced analytics and AI to better understand the complexities and interconnections of factors that affect wait times, the program can identify challenges, improve system flow and ultimately, reduce wait times. With its innovative approach, Alberta’s Precision Analytics Program is setting a new benchmark for leveraging advanced AI in healthcare, ensuring better outcomes for cancer patients across the province.
“Albertans deserve a health system that is informed by the best evidence. Robust analytics evaluate and provide this evidence to support the best outcomes for cancer patients,” says Shack.
