The seminar on “Artificial Intelligence in Health and Innovative Initiatives,” organized by the Faculty of Medicine, Advanced Research Center, and Health Services Policy Application and Research Center of Istanbul Aydın University, was held with great interest on November 26, 2024, in the Hasan Fehmi Büyükbayram Conference Hall in Block A. The keynote speaker of the seminar, Mete GÖNÇ, Founder and CEO of Zack-AI, shared the potential impacts of artificial intelligence technologies on the healthcare sector with the participants.
During the opening of the seminar, gratitude was expressed to all stakeholders who contributed to the realization of the event, with special thanks to Dr. Arta ARMANİ, a valuable faculty member of Istanbul Aydın University Faculty of Medicine, who came up with the idea for this seminar series and organized it from the beginning, as well as to Prof. Dr. Ali SINAĞ, Vice Rector of Istanbul Aydın University, Prof. Dr. Hasan SAYGIN, Board of Trustees Chairman and Corporate Advisor, Prof. Dr. Halil ALIŞ, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, and all team members involved in the seminar’s organization.
In the keynote speech, Mete GÖNÇ, Founder and CEO of Zack-AI, shared insights on the effects of artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector and its future potential. GÖNÇ highlighted that the human brain has a storage capacity of 256 exabytes, equivalent to 1.2 billion personal computer hard disks, and discussed how artificial intelligence is approaching this capacity.
GÖNÇ emphasized that generative artificial intelligence has the potential to revolutionize the fields of health, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. Despite being in its early stages, he noted that in the next five years, this technology will lead to significant changes in the healthcare industry. He pointed out that generative AI will have substantial effects on drug discovery, personalized treatment, accelerating clinical trials, and patient diagnosis. This technology will enable faster and more accurate results in drug research, allow for personalized treatment processes, and increase patient participation in clinical trials while enabling faster results.
The seminar also discussed the significant benefits that artificial intelligence can provide for healthcare professionals. AI-based decision support systems will help doctors make more accurate and faster decisions, thus improving the quality of healthcare services. Additionally, this technology will ease the workload of healthcare professionals and enable them to base clinical decisions on more solid foundations.
Ethical and regulatory issues encountered in the application of artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector were also key topics of the seminar. GÖNÇ emphasized the importance of ethical and legal regulations for the correct integration of these technologies. He noted that the use of AI in healthcare raises critical ethical issues, such as patient rights and privacy.
At the end of the seminar, strategies for successful AI integration were discussed. The need for healthcare professionals to adapt to these new technologies was emphasized, and it was stated that healthcare providers must be prepared to embrace AI. The seminar also highlighted the need for more cooperation and adaptation processes concerning health policies and regulations.
The seminar concluded with the presentation of a plaque by Prof. Dr. Ali SINAĞ, Vice Rector of IAU, and participants expressed their gratitude, noting that such events are crucial for the future of healthcare technologies.
