Should AI help make life-or-death decisions in the coronavirus fight?
- Chinese researchers say they have developed an artificial intelligence tool that can assist doctors to make choices about Covid-19 patients
- It analyses blood samples to predict survival rates and could help medical staff choose who gets treatment first
Doctors in the crowded chaos of a hospital dealing with a pandemic have to make fast clinical decisions about the treatment of one patient over another.
One argument is for a person with a better chance of fighting off the disease getting resources instead of someone with minimal chance of survival. The aim is to prevent the worst-case scenario that both die: one because they had little chance anyway, the other because they were denied treatment.
The other argument is that patients with the highest risk of death should get treatment first.
Chinese researchers say they have come up with a piece of artificial intelligence technology that can help doctors make a more informed decision on who has the better chance of survival – or highest risk of death – among competing Covid-19 patients.