The National Health Service (NHS) has called on the world’s biggest technology companies seeking support in fighting coronavirus and creating plans to use data from these service providers to predict where resources will be most needed. According to a BBC report, the NHS is working with Microsoft, Google, Palantir, and Faculty AI for creating AI-enabled dashboards that will collect the latest and meaningful information about coronavirus transmission.
The objective is to help healthcare workers better identify the most vulnerable demographics and also ensure that hospitals in regional hotspots are not overburdened.
The data that is used to fuel these dashboards will be drawn from NHS 111 hotline calls and a combination of other sources. Microsoft will lend its Azure cloud solutions for secure storage, Palantir will offer the analytical functions, and Faculty AI will develop the dashboard, simulations, and models. Additionally, Google’s G-Suite will be used for tracking and aggregating real-time operational data.
There are concerns though about how Palantir is handling personally identifiable information. Addressing this concern, NHS stated that once the pandemic is over, the data will be destroyed and put to strict contractual agreements that exist between NHS and partners.
In the coming days, the social media channels, namely, Twitter and Facebook will also start directing users to the NHS website. The website provides accurate information for the public about coronavirus. For the suspects and people tensed about having the virus, the NHS has started directing them to NHS111 to support the national phone line after the surge in calls. The call service has resolved the queries of more than a million people in the last month.
Talking about the help service at National Health Service (NHS), the chief medical officer added, “Getting the right health information to the public is essential, particularly during outbreaks of disease. Syndication from the NHS website means that people can be confident that the information they see meets the highest clinical standards.”
The center of information/dashboard will be available for government decision-makers at the earliest.
