Working Alongside Watson by Elizabeth Steele '18
Over the summer, I had the great pleasure of interning at one of the top cancer centers in the world, Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City. Throughout my time at MSK, I worked to improve patient experience and flow. But, my favorite aspect of the internship was researching MSK’s new collaboration with IBM Watson.
Watson is an analytical software conjoined with artificial intelligence to help increase the speed and accuracy of decision making. MSK oncologist, Dr. Kris, is currently working with a team of medical professionals to train and update Watson as if it were a medical student. Watson will be able to help experienced doctors come up with a multitude of different individualized treatment plans, as well as match patients to available clinical trial ... in a matter of seconds. Watson does not just produce the answers that are most popular but instead uses evidence-based confidence, deciphering what it knows from what it doesn't. Doctors will be able to look at the information provided by Watson and deduce the best course of action on how to move forward with individual patient treatment plans.
Through this collaboration, I've seen MSK’s motto of "More science. Less Fear." come to life.
Working here has taught me that there is much more to healthcare than meets the eye. I have seen a broad variety of different talents and experience levels come together for a common goal of beating cancer, and it's exciting to watch such an influential project firsthand. My internship has eye-opening and informative, and I'm interested to see what the future holds for cancer research, especially in regard to artificial intelligence. I’m inspired to learn more about artificial intelligence and how it will further enhance our knowledge of disease and care management. This internship has taught me to be open-minded to new ideas in technology. Healthcare is a field that’s constantly evolving. And I’ve learned to embrace it.
