Artificial intelligence (AI) is a rapidly growing field with many applications in the world of medicine, including continuing medical education. Ritu Kumar, Medscape lead data scientist, explains how Medscape Education is harnessing the power of AI.

Explaining AI

“AI is the way in which machines mimic human intelligence. It’s a powerful tool with many benefits, including solving problems and creating ‘smarter’ solutions with algorithms,” explains Ritu Kumar. “At Medscape, we use the power of AI to create Precision Education, or education specially designed for and targeted to members who need it most, in the format they prefer. This allows us to go beyond simple segmentation of learners and provide more personalization to our recommended education that matches a member’s individual learning journey.”

Medscape utilizes the triad of essential elements for AI -- data, tools, and expertise. By leveraging over 25 years of data regarding healthcare professionals’ learning preferences, the Medscape machine learning team can build and evolve AI algorithms designed to perform sophisticated predictions and calculations.

Putting AI to Use

“We started by building a hybrid recommendation engine to help us recommend the right education to the right clinicians at the right time during their education journey,” says Ms. Kumar.

“Using AI tools, we look at the education our clinicians have taken in the past, and compare it to the rest of the education we have available. We are then able to recommend to clinicians that because they found a certain education program useful, other selected programs may also be of interest or relevant to their learning need. “Our next initiative was focused on natural language processing -- using AI to analyze freeform feedback from members to drive improvements or generate ideas for medical education programs.”

Seeing Results

The AI-driven hybrid recommendation engine has yielded great results for Medscape, with increased email conversions and completion of outcomes assessments, both of which show that the right audience is being presented with the right education.

“We are also learning a lot from our members about their preferences, which will allow us to continue to evolve and personalize our education offerings,” notes Ms. Kumar.

“We’re only just starting to uncover the power of what AI can do. We are always finding innovative approaches to support our members’ needs. Our team of machine learning engineers are continuously working to develop new algorithms, and I’m excited about what AI can bring to the future of medical education.”

If you want to know more about Medscape Education please email: medscape.education@webmd.net

About Medscape:

Medscape delivers dynamic, innovative education to optimize learner engagement and patient outcomes worldwide. Medscape is the leading online global destination for physicians and healthcare professionals, providing over 5 million members with the latest medical news, expert opinion, and precision education (CME and CPD) to improve clinical practice and advance health outcomes. Medscape's unrivalled membership reach and therapeutic expertise deliver education across 30+ specialties in 40+ learning formats, using the latest digital and live technology.