New Delhi: Apollo Hospitals is increasing its investment in artificial intelligence (AI) to improve hospital operations and reduce the administrative burden on healthcare professionals.
The company plans to expand AI-driven automation for tasks such as medical documentation and diagnostic support.
AI to Assist Healthcare Professionals
Apollo, which operates over 10,000 hospital beds, has allocated 3.5 per cent of its digital budget to AI in the past two years.
Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, stated that the company intends to increase this investment. “Our objective is to free up two to three hours a day for doctors and nurses through the use of AI,” she said in a recent interview.
The hospital chain is developing AI tools to analyze electronic medical records (EMRs) and provide recommendations for diagnoses, tests and treatments.
These tools will also assist in transcribing doctors’ notes, generating discharge summaries and organizing nurses’ schedules. Additionally, Apollo is working on an AI-powered system to help clinicians select appropriate antibiotics.
Expansion Plans and Industry Challenges
Apollo aims to increase its bed capacity by one-third in the next four years. Some of the revenue from this expansion will be directed toward further AI development. The hospital group intends to integrate AI without significantly increasing operational costs.
Other major hospital chains, including Fortis Healthcare, Max Healthcare and Medanta, are also adopting AI. However, challenges such as high implementation costs, inconsistent data formats, and the limited availability of electronic medical records slow AI adoption in the sector.
According to Joydeep Ghosh, a partner at Deloitte India, these barriers continue to affect the broader implementation of AI in Indian healthcare.
Despite these challenges, healthcare providers see AI as a tool to improve efficiency and patient care, with investments expected to grow in the coming years.
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