EIT Health’s HelloAI RIS Online comes to an end with a long-lasting impact

More than a thousand students and professionals had the chance to become fluent in the basic theoretical and practical use of AI, thanks to EIT Health’s HelloAI RIS Online programme, which was launched in 2018. The third edition of this unique educational experience is over, but its impact on participants will be long-lasting.

The programme focused on countries where the pace of innovation is still moderate. Thanks to this year’s edition, Greece, Hungary, Portugal, Czechia and Romania have gained the greatest number of specialists trained in the field of AI.

“HelloAI RIS Online was a great opportunity to enhance my knowledge as well as an exciting experience that confirmed how much AI can provide as a resourceful tool in the medical field. Thanks to the programme I am now more aware of the actual uses of AI in healthcare and of its potential applications that could contribute to the development of Precision Diagnostics and Therapeutics” – said Mattia Di Stefano, an Italian medical student, after finishing this year’s programme, which counted 470 participants, who will be eligible for an EIT Health certificate.

‘I wanted to see the rate of efficiency of AI and the moral risks of it. However, I got much more. Thanks to the programme I am more familiar with the processes and I know much more about AI in health than before. It helped me understand it better and see it from a wider perspective’ – said Dr. Beáta Laki, assistant lecturer at Medical School of the University of Pécs, Hungary, adding that the course was an ‘aha experience’, during which she understood many things.

The programme was launched in 2018 as an EIT Health supported educational activity with a goal of preparing and involving future talents in solving AI application issues in healthcare. It offered a unique opportunity for medical students who wanted to learn the basics of AI and entrepreneurship in just ten weeks. The programme was built on the expertise of the field’s most knowledgeable healthcare professionals, who concentrated on a wide range of topics (e.g. ‘demystifying the world of AI’, exploring additional medical applications of AI, teaching the language behind ML, applying and boosting professional performance).

HelloAI RIS Online filled an important gap: experts agree that subjects on life-changing technologies – such as AI – are not part of most academic medicine programme’s curriculum, even though it would be of utmost importance that medical students gain more knowledge about them. This training offered a good opportunity for everyone – even for students who were not skilled in programming or advanced medicine – who wanted to understand how AI was transforming into the new superpower of medical professionals. The programme was made possible by its partner hubs in Stockholm, Barcelona and Budapest, a collaboration of the Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm (KTH), LEITAT Technology Center and GE Healthcare.

‘As studies show, future medical doctors will need a broad range of skills to adequately use AI in clinical practice, including machine learning and data science. Unfortunately, there is a lack of access to high-quality, practical AI education. HelloAI RIS Online aimed to fill this void: it engaged young talents from Central, Eastern and Southern Europe to build a community of experts who are equipped with skills that will be crucial in the future’, said Monika Toth, RIS Programme Manager, EIT Health InnoStars.