India’s National Health Authority and the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, are partnering to develop an open benchmarking platform for validating AI models.
The organizations recently signed a memorandum of understanding to use data to improve public health.
IIT Kanpur will build a platform for publicly verifiable performance benchmarks based on data available in the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM). This will be used to validate AI models for quantifying and diagnosing diseases.
The university will also build a database that protects against statistical manipulation, machine learning models and a consent management system for researchers. These will all be transferred to the NHA for management and maintenance.
WHY IT IS IMPORTANT
Health Minister Apurva Chandra highlighted the lack of data available for verifying AI models in India.
“(E)ne of the biggest challenges for AI models in healthcare is the availability and effectiveness of disease diagnosis data. This collaboration addresses this problem.”
The benchmarking platform being developed will provide researchers with access to high-quality data and a forum to collaborate with others in the health ecosystem. It will also ensure “all aspects” of data privacy, added LS Changsan, additional secretary of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
“(T)his partnership with the NHA will help democratize access to quality healthcare in India,” said Manindra Agrawal, professor and director, IIT Kanpur.
THE BIGGER TREND
The NHA, which manages the ABDM, a national programme launched in 2021 to lay the foundation for India’s digital health ecosystem, aims to use publicly available health and healthcare data to develop digital technologies.
The ABDM consists of three main blocks: the Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA) numbers, the Healthcare Professionals Registry (HPR) and the Health Facility Registry. In 2022, a public dashboard was created that provides a real-time feed of each block’s numbers.
An upgraded database of registered doctors in the country was recently launched. The new The National Medical Register, established under the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, will be part of ABDM under the HPR.