College of medicine
Bihorac spoke to the UF Foundation National Board about the college’s latest AI-based breakthrough.
By Manny Rea
Speaking on artificial intelligence’s relevance to critical care medicine, Azra Bihorac, M.D., M.S., the senior associate dean for research of the UF College of Medicine, shared AI-based breakthroughs at the spring UF Foundation National Board assembly at Emerson Alumni Hall April 18. The seasonal board meetings convene alumni of diverse backgrounds in collaboration with the UF Foundation and UF Advancement to conduct strategic planning for the university as well to receive updates on research. Bihorac, alongside Patrick Tighe, M.D., M.S., the executive director of the Quality and Patient Safety Initiative (QPSi), addressed board members from across the country on how their donor and strategic funding contributions have powered the college’s AI future.
Bihorac touched on a multitude of projects in progress, but the highlight of the event was her presentation of the “Intelligent Digital Twin Hospital,” a virtual hospital replica funded in part by the UF President’s Strategic Initiative. The digital twin aims to offer Florida healthcare professionals an immersive, life-like training through a virtual representation of the UF Brain and Heart Surgery Hospital. The project also aspires to empower Florida patients with AI virtual assistants, digital avatars who offer preparation and reassurance for medical procedures.
After the presentation, board members were welcomed to explore the digital twin through a VR simulation of an intensive care unit room.
“This is the next generation of remote medicine,” Carol Moss, a UF Foundation National Board member said. “It has a lot of potential for effectiveness in care.”
Moss has played many roles in health care including early years as a nurse at UF Health Shands Hospital, a perspective she considers when thinking about the future of medicine.
“My main goal with the digital twin would be to make sure that the patient doesn’t get lost in the technology,” she added. “That’s where nurses can have a big part in making sure the patient is front and center in the patient experience.”
Development of the ICU twin has passed the first of three phases: the mapping of the physical room, the addition of high-res textures to the room’s digital assets and the integration of those assets into the virtual environment using NVIDIA Omniverse, a 3D graphics platform that uses the processing power of the UF HiPerGator supercomputer to generate the ICU.
The first of many rooms to be virtualized, Bihorac assured the board members that the project will eventually encapsulate the rest of the Brain and Heart Surgery Hospital with the same level of attention given to room 4780 on the fourth floor of the east tower.
“The digital twin is a symphony of innovation, weaving together various technologies to create something truly remarkable,” Bihorac said.