An Australian biotechnology company is building what could be the first AI-powered hospital in Vietnam.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
The MedArmor AI Hospital will pursue a preventive healthcare model with an emphasis on early disease detection and timely interventions. It will be supported by AI and virtual care technologies.
The hospital will rely primarily on virtual technologies, such as videoconferencing, to deliver care. In addition, it will also offer telestroke management, electronic intensive care units and provider-to-provider online consultations.
As part of its foundational EHR system, the hospital will use “advanced AI to collect and analyze patient health data, delivering actionable insights for preventive screenings and personalized medical guidance.” Core8 develops AI that predicts health outcomes, identifies potential risks and recommends preventive measures. It also offers a health screening tool powered by AI for medical imaging.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Core8 explains it on its website that its AI hospital in Vietnam will address key industry challenges, namely equity, cost, environmental sustainability and employee well-being.
It employs a virtual care model to expand access to disease diagnosis and treatment to underserved communities with limited health care resources; remote health monitoring also helps reduce their costs.
Because it incorporates virtual technology, waste and pollution are also eliminated, and patients can reduce their carbon emissions by no longer having to travel long distances.
In addition, the AI-powered hospital will streamline administrative processes so that doctors and staff can focus more on providing care to patients and on their professional development.
THE BIG TREND
Core8’s AI hospital will be located in the 700-hectare Duc Hoa 3 Industrial Park in Vietnam’s Long An province. In August, the Australian company joined a consortium developing the area – located near Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam – into a hub for the biotechnology and semiconductor industries.
In recent years, Vietnam has sought international partners to support the digital transformation of its various industries. In healthcare, for example, it has signed its first healthcare AI partnership Microsoft last year.
The country is also working to introduce smart healthcare next year. Fundamental to this is the EMR system, which was announced nationwide expansion in October.
Meanwhile, a virtual technology-driven hospital is nothing new; the concept has increased in popularity since the recent pandemic. In 2022, the The Seha Virtual Hospital, which is said to be the largest virtual hospital in the world, serving 480,000 patients annually, was launched in Saudi Arabia.