Ramsay to set up central data hubs, use AI and ML for transformation

Australian private hospital operator Ramsay Health Care (RHC) has partnered with Google Cloud to give its healthcare facilities greater access to patient data. RHC will use Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) tools to support the company’s 2030 digital transformation strategy.

RHC includes a network of over 70 hospitals, clinics and surgical centres across Australia, where previously data would be stored in those separate, on-premise locations. The 2030 digital strategy involves creating a centralised data hub to deliver to healthcare providers operating under the RHC arm.

The strategy is being implemented to assist clinicians, giving them access to AI-powered risk assessment tools to identify risk of illness. The data available to healthcare workers and analysed by the hospital’s AI algorithms will contribute to identifying risk factors in order for doctors to more effectively diagnose patient conditions.

“… we’re taking an insights-driven approach to transforming how we deliver clinical care — everything from optimising patient care and experiences to identifying trends and supporting better decisions about treatments,” Dr Rachna Gandhi, Group Chief Digital and Data Officer at RHC, said.

“By working with Google Cloud to build our data foundation, we are gaining a deeper understanding of what is happening across the company.”

The data hub for RHC will be built using Google Cloud’s server-less data warehouse, BigQuery, allowing Ramsay to ingest, store and analyse real-time data and large volumes of raw data for the business. Data is encrypted end-to-end and the approach to data governance and privacy with Google ensures only Ramsay controls access and use of its patients’ data between its facilities.

“All data is encrypted by default at rest and in-flight and we are using our own encryption keys to further protect the sensitive confidential health information. No one accesses our patient data except us. For healthcare providers, that is non-negotiable,” Gandhi said.

RHC’s digital strategy looks to streamline clinical workflows and provide healthcare workers with access to the information required for patient care. The AI-led solutions include the analysis of clinical notes, high-speed coding and demand forecasting.

These solutions aim to identify patterns and trends that inform clinical decision-making, including AI algorithms that should reduce the workload of medical coders and improve coding accuracy; solutions to the provision of medication use; and coordination of a systematic allocation of procedures to optimise theatre and staff utilisation.

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