Message from the Program Director
What do you imagine from the term "AI hospital"? You may imagine a cold facility where patients are examined by AI robots. My vision of an AI hospital is quite different. This program is aimed at increasing the time for in-person dialogs between patients and medical workers such as doctors and nurses by combining the provision of advanced medical cares based on AI technology with work style reform in the healthcare field. Our goal is to establish "advanced medical sites that enable heart to heart communication".
A variety of problems have emerged in the medical field. Because the volume of data related to medical services is increasing at an accelerating speed, it is becoming increasingly difficult to correctly grasp relevant information. At the same time, it has become increasingly difficult to allocate adequate time for consultations and providing nursing care to patients because medical workers need to waste a lot of time for entering data into electronic medical charts, preparing nursing records, and other tasks. In addition, the burden of diagnostic imaging and pathological diagnoses has gradually increased. Furthermore, clear rules have yet to be established concerning medical devices that may contribute to the achievement of the quality of medicine, such as wearable devices and other AI systems under development. Medical information management systems for patients are inadequate from the perspective of disaster preparedness and other emergency situations. It is also critical to establish systems for diagnostic assistance and for supporting the selection of therapies in advanced and diversified healthcare to ensure proper diagnoses and medical services. Our program is also addressing a challenge such as establishment of a highly secured and integrated medical information database.
Our program aims to apply AI-based, state-of-the-art technologies for the resolution of major issues in the aging society of Japan, as well as for the issues faced in the medical field. We are planning to start model of "AI hospital" in 10 medical institutions by the end of fiscal 2022, where more precise diagnostic assistance and treatment systems will be based on detailed patient information. Our ultimate goal is to enable more AI hospitals to be continuously deployed across Japan.
We have already established collaborative efforts with the Japan Medical Association, the Cabinet Office, and other governmental agencies to accomplish this goal. We will make every effort to provide high-quality medical services that satisfy the needs of patients and their families in collaboration with other entities participating in this program.
Promotion Film
Profile of NAKAMURA Yusuke, Program Director
NAKAMURA Yusuke, PhD, is currently the President of the National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition (NIBIOHN), and Professor Emeritus at The University of Tokyo and Professor Emeritus at The University of Chicago. Since graduating from the Osaka University Faculty of Medicine in 1977, Dr. Nakamura has been one of the pioneers of genetic medicine, discovering a number of genetic disease markers useful for identifying pathogenetic mechanisms and treatment.
His previous positions include the following: (i) Professor, Laboratory of Molecular Medicine, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo; (ii) Professor and Director, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo; (iii) Director, RIKEN Center for Genomic Medicine; (iv) Director, National Cancer Center Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan; (v) Special Advisor to the Cabinet Secretary General, Office of Medical Innovation, Cabinet Secretariat, the Government of Japan; (vi) Professor, Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology/Oncology, the University of Chicago; and (vii) Deputy Director, Center for Personalized Therapeutics, the University of Chicago; (viii) Director, Cancer Precision Medicine Center, Japanese Foundation for Cancer Research. Dr. Nakamura has been the President of NIBIOHN since April 2022.
He has published over 1,550 papers in peer-reviewed international journals, which have been cited over 205,000 times. He received the 2020 Clarivate Analytics Citation Laureates. He was selected as Persons of Cultural Merit in 2021.