Egypt's Kasr Al-Aini medical college has been actively working to promote awareness and utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare since 2024. The college's efforts aim to educate doctors and students on how to effectively use AI and its applications in the medical field. According to Dr. Omar Azzam, Deputy Dean of Kasr Al-Aini medical college for community service and environmental development, AI has become an undeniable reality that will not replace doctors but rather serve as a tool to support and enhance their capabilities.
Dr. Azzam stated that some doctors' fears about AI stem from misconceptions that it may replace them in diagnosing diseases and providing treatment or performing surgeries. He emphasized that AI's primary goal is to support doctors and enhance their abilities, not replace them. The college has started collecting research and studies on AI applications in medicine and organizing monthly meetings via Zoom to discuss the latest developments and advancements in this field.
The college's initiative has garnered significant interest from students and young doctors, who possess a good understanding of AI applications and are more capable of handling modern technologies compared to older generations. This has prompted the college to involve them in monitoring new research and discussing it with professors and specialists, ultimately contributing to the enhancement of medical knowledge and keeping pace with rapid developments.
Kasr Al-Aini medical college has organized four major awareness seminars that covered AI concepts, applications, and innovation. The college emphasizes innovation, which has numerous benefits on both individual and national levels, including registering patents, protecting intellectual property, and converting innovations into projects with economic returns.
Dr. Azzam highlighted the importance of integrating scientific research and the industrial sector to support the activation of productive sectors in the state and achieve economic and developmental returns. He stressed that innovation's impact extends beyond the researcher or educational institution to the national economy.
The college plans to prepare a working paper that includes regulatory and governance frameworks for using AI, given the rapid developments and daily changes in this field. The college has established an AI office, led by Dr. Azzam, under the supervision of the college's Dean, Dr. Hussam Salah. One of the office's main objectives is to employ AI in medical education, ensuring the quality of the educational process and the academic entity.
The AI office aims to develop an institutional framework that guarantees the utilization of AI's modern capabilities while maintaining the required standards to graduate qualified doctors with the necessary medical knowledge and skills, as well as the ability to handle modern technologies.
Key points
- The college is working to promote awareness and utilization of AI in healthcare.
- AI will not replace doctors but serve as a tool to support and enhance their capabilities.
- The college has established an AI office to employ AI in medical education and develop an institutional framework for its use.
