The Veterans Administration www.va.gov is piloting IBM technology to assist physicians in caring for patients. The two year pilot will emphasize Evidence-based Critical Decisions. The plan is to study innovative approaches to quickly search EMRs and medical literature for relevant published studies. The IBM Corporation www.ibm.com was awarded the contract for $6,782,693 to provide a system using Watson technology made famous on Jeopardy in 2011.
IBM is working with several healthcare organizations to apply Watson’s cognitive capabilities to help doctors identify and analyze cancer treatment options. They are looking at the opportunities and challenges that next-generation technologies have that may be part of an ongoing effort for VA to advance the quality of healthcare. During the pilot, clinical decisions will not be made on actual patient encounters, but will use realistic simulations.
Interim Under Secretary for Health Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D., said “A tool that can help a clinician quickly collect, combine, and present information will enable clinicians to spend more time listening and interacting with the veteran.”