Google continues to advance its artificial intelligence technology in the healthcare sector, with the latest update to its Vertex AI Search for healthcare tool. This tool, backed by Google’s latest AI model called Gemini 2.0, now has the ability to analyze tables, charts, and other images to provide clinicians with a more comprehensive view of their patients’ health.
The Vertex AI Search for healthcare tool was initially launched in March and uses generative AI to allow clinicians to search for information across patient notes and clinical data. It can also answer questions related to a patient’s medical history. This tool is an extension of the Vertex AI Search platform, which helps developers build search engines tailored to their specific needs, with a focus on medical information.
With the introduction of multimodal AI capabilities, Vertex AI Search for healthcare can now understand and extract data from a variety of sources beyond text. This is especially beneficial in healthcare, where a significant amount of data is in image form, such as x-rays and scans. The new “Visual Q&A” feature allows the tool to process images directly as input, without the need for conversion to text, providing users with relevant information in their search results.
In addition to its integration with Google’s language models Gemini 1.5 Flash and MedLM, Vertex AI Search for healthcare is now supported by Gemini 2.0, which offers improved speed and accuracy. While the exact number of healthcare organizations currently using this tool is not disclosed, it has been adopted by health systems like Community Health Systems and Highmark Health, as well as EHR vendor Meditech.
Google’s partnership with Counterpart Health, a subsidiary of health insurer Clover, further demonstrates the company’s commitment to advancing AI in healthcare. Counterpart Health’s clinical decision support tool will now integrate Vertex AI Search, providing healthcare providers with enhanced capabilities for patient care.
As the healthcare industry increasingly embraces AI tools, cloud giants like Google are racing to develop innovative solutions and establish partnerships with healthcare organizations. While AI holds great potential for improving patient care and operational efficiency, concerns about privacy, security, and the technology’s potential for errors remain. Google’s focus on refining language models for healthcare data and empowering organizations to create their own AI agents reflects the company’s dedication to driving innovation in the healthcare sector.
Despite the rapid growth of AI in healthcare, industry stakeholders must navigate the complexities of regulatory compliance, data security, and ethical considerations to ensure the safe and effective implementation of these technologies. Continued research and collaboration within the healthcare community will be essential to maximize the benefits of AI while mitigating potential risks.
