Netcare is seeking regulatory approval to roll out an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered clinical decision support tool across its hospitals, after a successful clinical study demonstrated its ability to identify early warning signs of life-threatening patient deterioration.
The healthcare provider says it has submitted an application to the South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) to become the local distributor of the technology, developed in partnership with Germany-based clinical AI company Telehealth Competence Centre (TCC) Clinical Solutions GmbH.
The application follows a clinical trial conducted in Netcare’s intensive care and high care units, where the AI algorithm was evaluated for its ability to predict serious medical complications before they become clinically apparent.
“Already, the quick Sequential Organ Failure Assessment score has proven valuable in the critical care setting as an indicator of a patient’s potential risk of developing serious conditions like heart failure, respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation, infection, sepsis, or acute cardiac arrhythmia,” explains professor Reitze Rodseth, head of clinical data innovation and research at Netcare.
The AI model analyses real-time patient data – including heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and respiratory rate – using an artificial neural network and machine learning algorithm, says Netcare.
It adds that the information is continuously collected through Netcare’s digital health platform, allowing clinicians to identify patients at risk before conventional monitoring methods detect deterioration.
According to Netcare, the algorithm was developed by TCC scientists and validated over several years through collaboration between researchers from Netcare, TCC, the University of KwaZulu-Natal and DigitalOn Tech.
The entities are now expanding the scope of the technology beyond its current capabilities.
“Building on the capabilities of the algorithm, we are now turning our attention to models that further protect hospital patients by automatically predicting the risk of developing renal failure or serious respiratory difficulties requiring ventilation while a person is in hospital, and even after they have been discharged home, if necessary,” Rodseth says.
“Another important clinical indicator we're developing aims to calculate the probability of critical care readmission following discharge from the intensive care unit,” adds internal medicine, intensive care and emergency medicine specialist professor Christian Storm, chief executive officer and co-founder of TCC GmbH.
The partnership between Netcare and TCC began in 2023 and focuses on using AI to support clinical decision-making, while ensuring the security of patients' personal data.
“The remote digital intensive-care level of individual monitoring provides real-time, high-frequency data as a basis for AI-guided prediction of a person's medical course, proactively identifying where preventive treatment may be beneficial to guide earlier intervention,” he says.
“By extending our partnership with Netcare in the South African healthcare market, we look forward to further extending the possibilities this technology creates for better informed treatment decisions that ultimately achieve better patient outcomes and make a meaningful difference in people’s lives.”
Dr Anchen Laubscher, group medical director of Netcare, says the initiative forms part of the group's broader strategy to embed data and AI into healthcare delivery.
“Today, judicious use of AI has become an essential part of healthcare. The clinical indicators derived from this technology provide valuable data points to support doctors' treatment decisions, often creating opportunities to prevent clinical deterioration.
“Our partnership with TCC represents an important advancement in the quality of care available to our patients and further enhances the state-of-the-art tools at the fingertips of medical professionals practising in Netcare facilities,” Laubscher concludes.
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