As AI transforms healthcare – with more providers introducing AI into their systems, more departments in hospitals and health systems implementing AI projects and their own employ cases – someone has to be accountable for it all, helping to ensure responsible employ technology towards obtaining reliable results.
For an ever-growing number of healthcare organizations, that person is the chief artificial intelligence officer. This is a director, usually a doctor, who is given full authority at the top management level to oversee all artificial intelligence.
Alda Mizaku was named chief data and artificial intelligence officer at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC last summer. I met with her for an extensive interview for the position of Director of Artificial Intelligence.
Today, in the first part of this two-part interview, she will talk about how National Children’s Hospital offered her the position of director of artificial intelligence and what she was looking for, what made her a good fit given her background, what skills anyone who wants to become a director should have for Artificial Intelligence, and artificial intelligence will be part of its role.
Q. How did Children’s National Hospital contact you about taking over as director of artificial intelligence? What were they looking for and who would you report it to?
AND. Children’s National was looking for a leader to address data analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities. This is something they have been looking for for a long time. With a up-to-date CEO joining the organization, many of these plans came into action.
When we were having some of those initial conversations, we had a clear vision of leveraging AI, incorporating individual, industry-leading data science and AI capabilities and being able to connect that with operations to improve patients, improve operational efficiency and bring some of these more advanced opportunities as part of your daily work.
They were interested in hiring someone with extensive experience in both the capabilities of AI in healthcare and filling the gap in some of their clinical needs. So someone who can talk about technical possibilities and understands clinical needs and can apply technology to be able to meet those needs. My role is Chief Data and AI Officer and I report to our CIO.
We also have alignment to ensure alignment with the overall strategic goals and technical direction of the organization.
Q. This is your first position as Director of Artificial Intelligence. What about your background makes you a good fit for the position of Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer? What skills should anyone who wants to become an AI executive have?
AND. A little about my past. I started as a biomechanical engineer. I focused on computer diagnostics. I built predictive models in the area of colorectal cancer and developed a up-to-date method to be able to perform a three-year forecast there.
I then moved into high-throughput genotyping to build software that would solve specific problems in a high-throughput genotyping lab to enhance efficiency there. Since then, I have spent 11 years in the healthcare industry working in data analytics in various roles and departments. When I look at my background, I would say it combines extensive knowledge of healthcare and healthcare technology with a forceful foundation in data analytics and machine learning.
I have also been involved in several AI-based projects aimed at improving patient outcomes and streamlining operations in healthcare facilities. My advice to anyone looking to become an AI executive is to ensure they have a thorough understanding of AI technologies and the clinical operational aspect of the area they are working on.
They also need to have really forceful leadership skills and effective communication skills, as well as the ability to speak to a diverse group of stakeholders. One thing that is very common in my role is data, and AI can be applied to any department and department. We have to be able to change hats very often and not talk to someone from HR, someone from finance or someone from the clinic.
One other thing would be, especially in this space, to just have a passion for patient-centered care to be able to make significant changes in efficiency there.
Q. Please describe the artificial intelligence portion of your work at Children’s National Hospital. Broadly speaking, what is expected of you? More specifically, what is your typical day like?
AND. At a high level, broadly speaking, my role is to develop and implement the AI strategy, ensuring that it aligns with the mission and strategic direction of the organization, all of which aligns with our mission to be able to provide exceptional care for these children, who are interested in our care.
This includes, but is not confined to, identifying potential applications that may exist in the market that we need to implement to enhance efficiency in our environment. This may mean overseeing specific projects. If we don’t see something in the market, can we develop it within our team and be able to deliver that performance in our space?
It examines the ethical considerations associated with implementing artificial intelligence and whether we can do it responsibly and effectively. For me, a typical day involves a lot of collaboration, a lot of meetings, both with clinical and technical teams. I have to understand and meet their needs every day.
I meet with data scientists and review projects. I am able to present many of their findings, and through the executive team, I have opportunities to lend a hand make decisions and drive some of the data-driven decision-making processes within our organization.