It takes five minutes to pre-register before using the pod and another 5-10 minutes for the full scan.

Free to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) pods that will do quick health scans for the public and give immediate results will be set up across Dubai in a few months.

At least 44 pod units will be ready by mid-August and soon be set up across at malls, clinics, corporations or other places with a high footfall, said Tariq Hussain, CEO of Bodyo, the company that has conceived and assembled the health pods in the UAE. The company has the capacity to produce 350 such pods.

"These are the first such kind of AI pods designed in the UAE," said Tariq, adding that "only the RnD had been done by the biomedical scientists in France". The project was presented as part of the fourth Future Accelerators Cycle being held under the Dubai Future Foundation showcasing innovation in healthcare.

"The aim of the Dubai Health Authority (DHA), as part of the Dubai Future Accelerators initiative, is to explore the latest in technology," said Dr Mohammad Al Redha, director of the executive office for organisational transformation in DHA.

"We aim to revolutionise the way healthcare is delivered while focusing on patient-centric care. We are looking for ways to improve the lives of patients and ensure patients lead a high quality of life to the best extent possible. Technology also has the power to improve efficiencies of the overall health sector, improve healthcare management and bring down the cost of care," he said.

Khulood Al Ali, specialist at the executive office for organisational transformation in DHA, said: "It is important to understand the benefits of the Dubai Future Accelerators initiative. It provides us with a platform to think of ground-breaking ideas that can benefit patients and the health sector in general."

Once the user has stepped into the pod and entered a programme, he/she will be scanned for body composition including blood pressure, body fat, hydration, weight and much more.

"The scanner is different from the ones available at gyms and other places since they just scan certain body parts but the AI pod does a full body scan and gives a health score of between 1-10," said Tariq.

Users can download an app on both Apple and Android systems which has a health programme that can help improve the score. "There is a training and nutritional programme designed as per the user's needs," he explained, adding that the data can be used to improve the score that can be checked on the next visit. The data can also be shared with the doctor. "This way we can follow trends and patterns and monitor diseases before they set in and become an issue," he said.

It takes five minutes to pre-register before using the pod and another 5-10 minutes for the full scan.

The company will start clinical trials with the DHA and the results will be shared with doctors to check for variables. "We want to motivate and encourage people to come back so we will plan to give them gifts such as credits to engage them," said Tariq.

The version being readied for the UAE has a privacy panel and a range of languages including Arabic. In the US the pod is leased for between $1,000 to $1,400 per month, while the company does all the maintenance.

Tariq Hussain with the AI pod. - Supplied photo

How to use the AI pod

It takes five minutes to pre-register before using the pod and another 5-10 minutes for the full scan. Once the user has stepped into the pod and entered a programme, he/she will be scanned for body composition including blood pressure, body fat, hydration, weight and much more. The pod does a full body scan and gives a health score of between 1-10.

Users can download an app on both Apple and Android systems which has a health programme that can help improve the score. There is also a training and nutritional programme designed as per the user's needs.

A headband to detect stroke for high risk patients

Another innovation in healthcare being presented at the Dubai Future Accelerators initiative is a headband that predicts stroke for high-risk patients in hospital settings.

Ahmed ElMeligi from a Canada based company HINT (Healthcare Innovation in Neuro Technology) has developed the headband that works on EEG technology and with an AI algorithm. "Stroke patients can benefit the most if their condition is attended to within four and half hours," explained Ahmed.

Ahmed explains his stroke headband. - Supplied photo

The headband is for high-risk patients who are already admitted in hospital and upon signs of stroke will send GPS alerts to the caregivers and family members as well.

"This headband is particularly important for UAE since the age for stroke here is between 45-55 years while the global age is 65 years," said Ahmed, who has designed the headgear.

The company is planning a clinical trial on high-risk patients with DHA. A pilot study will be undertaken at the Rashid Hospital with a minimum of 40 patients.

In Canada, the headband has already been tested on 80 patients.

High-risk stroke patients are those with high blood pressure. It is the main risk factor for stroke, diabetes, heart diseases, smoking, age and gender, race and ethnicity, personal or family history of stroke and brain aneurysms or arteriovenous malformations (AVMs).

KT NANO EDIT

AI on health

Dubai's plans to be a healthy city are on track. Using new technology for public health scans is, in fact, the second step of the process; the first being awareness campaigns that reached its peak with a fitness movement launched by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai. AI scans save time and it's free. They will help detect early stages of illnesses and doctors can move to treatment plans without delay.

asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com