Google AI Firm DeepMind Develops 'Streams' App to Help UK Doctors With Patients

Doctors in London will be getting help from Google-backed AI firm DeepMind, it was announced in a post on Thursday.

DeepMind is teaming up with doctors at Imperial College hospitals for a five year partnership. With the Streams app, developed by DeepMind, physicians will be able to monitor the health of patients. The app gathers data about key physiological measures and warns when readings are high or low, according to the BBC.

The app came from an agreement with London's Royal Free hospital that gave Google access to 1.6 million patient records.

How The App Helps Doctors

The app supports doctors in caring for patients at risk for deterioration, especially with conditions where early intervention can have a major impact, DeepMind says.

With the app, health employees can get notifications, similar to breaking news alerts, of when test results show a patient is at risk of getting seriously ill. Streams also lets clinicians securely assign and communicate about clinical tasks, and give them the data needed to make diagnoses and decisions, the AI firm says.

“Apps have changed the way we live our lives, from banking to shopping, and they are clearly part of the future healthcare landscape,” said Dr Sanjay Gautama, chief clinical information officer at Imperial College Healthcare Trust.

“They bring immense opportunities for faster and more efficient care, by making access to vital information quicker and easier for clinicians,” Gautama added. “But for apps to be useful and safe they cannot operate in isolation – they need to be securely linked to the core electronic patient record system.”