AI in Healthcare: MCPHS Leads the Conversation on Innovation

A new speaker series explores practical applications of artificial intelligence to shape the future of healthcare and healthcare education.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming the capabilities across the healthcare industry and increasing demand for professionals trained to leverage AI and lead innovations in the space.

The Center for Research and Discovery and the School of Healthcare Business and Technology at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS) launched a new speaker series, “AI in Healthcare: Leading the Future of Learning and Caring,” to explore these opportunities and lead the conversation about AI in healthcare.

“This series highlights the University’s unique position at the intersection of healthcare and emerging technologies,” said Michael Spooner, EdD, Dean of the School of Healthcare Business and Technology. “The speakers will explore uses of AI in healthcare and provide resources for students to better understand this rapidly evolving landscape.”

The series began on April 22 with a lecture by Nikhil Sahni, a Partner at McKinsey & Company in Boston—where he leads the company’s Center for US Healthcare Improvement—and a fellow in the Harvard Economics Department. He also recently co-authored an article in “The New England Journal of Medicine.” The lecture was held on the Boston campus and presented virtually via Zoom.

Future lectures will explore AI-driven development, ethical considerations of AI in healthcare, the potential for generative AI, and more. The series will also challenge MCPHS students and faculty to engage with AI, developing their own creative and innovative applications of the technology, including with an AI Hackathon to be delivered in partnership with the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative.

Most of all, the series aims to feature thought leaders and topics that align with the needs of fields across the University and represent student and faculty interests. Community members can complete this survey to to share their thoughts about AI.

“Throughout this series, we hope to inspire critical thought and research opportunities and better understand students’ questions and concerns about implementing AI in their academic and professional endeavors,” said Keri Griffin, PhD, MPH, MPA, MCHES, Dean of the Center for Research and Discovery. “We look forward to engaging with the Community to ensure the speakers we invite and the topics they discuss represent students’ needs and interests and prepare them to innovate in the healthcare AI landscape.”

Through this series and other initiatives, MCPHS is advancing education in AI and other emerging technologies. The School of Healthcare Business and Technology recently launched an Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare Certificate, designed for healthcare professionals to gain foundational knowledge of its applications and explore AI’s evolving role in healthcare. Students in the Doctor of Healthcare Administration (DHA) program are using AI to improve their academic writing and research skills.

Details about upcoming events in the speaker series will be posted to the MCPHS events calendar.