Project number
25033
Organization
Global Medic Force
Offering
ENGR498-F2024-S2025
BACKGROUND
The MD-Sensei (MD-S) platform is an advanced AI-driven solution acting as a Digital Clinical Mentor to deliver concise, situationally relevant, real-life clinical guidance to Healthcare Workers (HCWs) in the developing world, at point-of-care, in real-time, and on-demand.
Developed by medical volunteers from Global Medic Force (GMF), a global medical social enterprise, MD-S harnesses the wealth of clinical expertise from over +2,000 GMF medical volunteers across 18 Western countries to empower HCWs to provide the best care possible within their existing resource limitations. As the digital version of a GMF Clinical Mentor, MD-S vastly expands the reach, scale, speed, and impact of GMF’s traditional in-person skill transfer programs which have consistently shown significant improvement in clinical outcomes and standardization of care in areas where effective care delivery is severely limited. While currently available in beta via a web-browser interface, MD-S’ accessibility is greatly hindered by a lack of computers and reliable internet connections in local clinic facilities where HCWs provide care, especially in remote, rural areas and among community health centers, clinics and hospitals. To overcome these inherent structural deficits and maximize MD-S’ impact, a robust and specialized mobile application (MD-S App) is to be developed. The MD-S App will be designed for broad compatibility and offline functionality, ensuring that the wealth of GMF’s critical clinical expertise is in the hands of HCWs whenever they need it irrespective of infrastructure limitations. The technical robustness and scalability of the MD-S App will be as critical to maximizing the impact of MD-S across resource-poor settings as is its clinical content.
The MD-S App will be distributed across the developing world to HCWs (any location: remote, rural, cities, community health centers, clinics, hospitals), Ministries of Health, healthcare NGOs, United Nations/WHO/USAID sponsored healthcare programs, amongst others. Its ultimate beneficiaries are the millions of patients and their families whose lives and livelihoods are transformed by quality healthcare delivery.
SYSTEM OVERVIEW
Introduction:
The MD-S App is a digital extension of GMF’s clinical mentoring programs designed to provide HCWs with concise, instant and on-demand access to situationally relevant expert clinical guidance at point- of-care, in real-time, through a user-friendly mobile interface. The MD-S App seeks to harness the power of artificial intelligence and mobile technology to deliver vital clinical expertise to HCWs at point-of-care in developing nations, enhancing the quality of care provided and improving patient outcomes regardless of infrastructure and resource limitations. The MD-S App will be developed for Android and iOS mobile devices.
System Architecture:
The MD-S App operates as a client in a client-server model, where the server-side is the existing MD-S content platform. The MD-S App integrates with the MD-S content platform through a secure API, enabling synchronous and asynchronous data exchange. The MD-S App architecture supports core functionalities such as user authentication, personalized content delivery, online data collection, performance analytics, offline access & data collection, and data synchronization.
Component Integration: Key components of the system include:
1. GMF-branded User Interface (UI): a responsive and adaptive UI that provides an optimized user experience for mobile devices (various OS and screen sizes) and that seamlessly transitions between online and offline modes without confusing the HCW.
2. Application Programming Interface (API): A robust and secure API layer that facilitates communication between the MD-S App and the MD-S content platform, ensuring data consistency and real-time content updates, as well as data collection for analytics purposes.
3. Dual-mode chatbot: A dual-mode chatbot capable of operating both online (with access to the MD-S content platform) and offline (using a local database while offline). The chatbot is trained on the GMF clinical content available on the MD-S content platform. Its answers are limited to the clinical content on the MD-S content platform.
4. Local Data Storage: An efficient, comprehensive and easily searchable local database for storing usage data and clinical content accessed during offline use, with mechanisms for periodic synchronization with the central MD-S content platform without disrupting the user experience. The database is optimized for quick access and response generation.
5. Security Module: A security component that manages encryption, user authentication, and data protection, adhering to standards and regulations.
Priority Functionality: The MD-S App includes the following key functions:
1. Real-time access to concise, situationally relevant, clinical expert guidance at point-of-care in Q&A format.
2. Offline access to clinical expert guidance (Q&A format) via the clinical content stored in a local database, with updates and data collected synchronized when connectivity is established.
3. User authentication and session management to ensure secure and personalized access.
4. Search and navigation tools to allow HCWs to quickly access relevant information.
5. Dual-mode chatbot capable of operating both online (with access to the MD-S content platform) and offline (using a local database) delivering Q&A clinical guidance in a chatbot-like manner. The Q&A clinical guidance is strictly limited to the clinical content on the MD-S content platform, on which the chatbot has been trained.
6. Feedback and support features to collect user input, user data, user questions, and provide technical assistance.
7. Contact button for contacting GMF (via email or a whatsapp-like facility).
8. In-app video call facilities for follow-up one-on-one guidance with individual GMF medical volunteers (not available in offline modus).
9. In-app messaging system allowing HCWs to request additional assistance and follow-up from GMF medical volunteers while providing functionality for enclosing patient pictures, lab results, patient videos. (not available in offline modus).
10. Real-time access to concise, situationally relevant, clinical expert guidance at point-of-care based on geolocation of individual HCWs
11. Engaging UI/UX design
Operational Environment:
The MD-S App is designed to be resilient and functional in diverse environments, from urban centers to off-grid rural areas. It accounts for the variability in mobile device capabilities (various OS versions), internet connectivity, and user technical proficiency. The MD-S App is optimized to ensure it does not compromise the overall functionality of the user’s device including excessively draining the battery or requiring more storage than is customary.
Maintenance and Evolution:
The MD-S App is structured to facilitate ongoing maintenance, including regular updates to both the software and clinical content. The MD-S App design allows for scalability and for the introduction of additional future features.
The MD-Sensei (MD-S) platform is an advanced AI-driven solution acting as a Digital Clinical Mentor to deliver concise, situationally relevant, real-life clinical guidance to Healthcare Workers (HCWs) in the developing world, at point-of-care, in real-time, and on-demand.
Developed by medical volunteers from Global Medic Force (GMF), a global medical social enterprise, MD-S harnesses the wealth of clinical expertise from over +2,000 GMF medical volunteers across 18 Western countries to empower HCWs to provide the best care possible within their existing resource limitations. As the digital version of a GMF Clinical Mentor, MD-S vastly expands the reach, scale, speed, and impact of GMF’s traditional in-person skill transfer programs which have consistently shown significant improvement in clinical outcomes and standardization of care in areas where effective care delivery is severely limited. While currently available in beta via a web-browser interface, MD-S’ accessibility is greatly hindered by a lack of computers and reliable internet connections in local clinic facilities where HCWs provide care, especially in remote, rural areas and among community health centers, clinics and hospitals. To overcome these inherent structural deficits and maximize MD-S’ impact, a robust and specialized mobile application (MD-S App) is to be developed. The MD-S App will be designed for broad compatibility and offline functionality, ensuring that the wealth of GMF’s critical clinical expertise is in the hands of HCWs whenever they need it irrespective of infrastructure limitations. The technical robustness and scalability of the MD-S App will be as critical to maximizing the impact of MD-S across resource-poor settings as is its clinical content.
The MD-S App will be distributed across the developing world to HCWs (any location: remote, rural, cities, community health centers, clinics, hospitals), Ministries of Health, healthcare NGOs, United Nations/WHO/USAID sponsored healthcare programs, amongst others. Its ultimate beneficiaries are the millions of patients and their families whose lives and livelihoods are transformed by quality healthcare delivery.
SYSTEM OVERVIEW
Introduction:
The MD-S App is a digital extension of GMF’s clinical mentoring programs designed to provide HCWs with concise, instant and on-demand access to situationally relevant expert clinical guidance at point- of-care, in real-time, through a user-friendly mobile interface. The MD-S App seeks to harness the power of artificial intelligence and mobile technology to deliver vital clinical expertise to HCWs at point-of-care in developing nations, enhancing the quality of care provided and improving patient outcomes regardless of infrastructure and resource limitations. The MD-S App will be developed for Android and iOS mobile devices.
System Architecture:
The MD-S App operates as a client in a client-server model, where the server-side is the existing MD-S content platform. The MD-S App integrates with the MD-S content platform through a secure API, enabling synchronous and asynchronous data exchange. The MD-S App architecture supports core functionalities such as user authentication, personalized content delivery, online data collection, performance analytics, offline access & data collection, and data synchronization.
Component Integration: Key components of the system include:
1. GMF-branded User Interface (UI): a responsive and adaptive UI that provides an optimized user experience for mobile devices (various OS and screen sizes) and that seamlessly transitions between online and offline modes without confusing the HCW.
2. Application Programming Interface (API): A robust and secure API layer that facilitates communication between the MD-S App and the MD-S content platform, ensuring data consistency and real-time content updates, as well as data collection for analytics purposes.
3. Dual-mode chatbot: A dual-mode chatbot capable of operating both online (with access to the MD-S content platform) and offline (using a local database while offline). The chatbot is trained on the GMF clinical content available on the MD-S content platform. Its answers are limited to the clinical content on the MD-S content platform.
4. Local Data Storage: An efficient, comprehensive and easily searchable local database for storing usage data and clinical content accessed during offline use, with mechanisms for periodic synchronization with the central MD-S content platform without disrupting the user experience. The database is optimized for quick access and response generation.
5. Security Module: A security component that manages encryption, user authentication, and data protection, adhering to standards and regulations.
Priority Functionality: The MD-S App includes the following key functions:
1. Real-time access to concise, situationally relevant, clinical expert guidance at point-of-care in Q&A format.
2. Offline access to clinical expert guidance (Q&A format) via the clinical content stored in a local database, with updates and data collected synchronized when connectivity is established.
3. User authentication and session management to ensure secure and personalized access.
4. Search and navigation tools to allow HCWs to quickly access relevant information.
5. Dual-mode chatbot capable of operating both online (with access to the MD-S content platform) and offline (using a local database) delivering Q&A clinical guidance in a chatbot-like manner. The Q&A clinical guidance is strictly limited to the clinical content on the MD-S content platform, on which the chatbot has been trained.
6. Feedback and support features to collect user input, user data, user questions, and provide technical assistance.
7. Contact button for contacting GMF (via email or a whatsapp-like facility).
8. In-app video call facilities for follow-up one-on-one guidance with individual GMF medical volunteers (not available in offline modus).
9. In-app messaging system allowing HCWs to request additional assistance and follow-up from GMF medical volunteers while providing functionality for enclosing patient pictures, lab results, patient videos. (not available in offline modus).
10. Real-time access to concise, situationally relevant, clinical expert guidance at point-of-care based on geolocation of individual HCWs
11. Engaging UI/UX design
Operational Environment:
The MD-S App is designed to be resilient and functional in diverse environments, from urban centers to off-grid rural areas. It accounts for the variability in mobile device capabilities (various OS versions), internet connectivity, and user technical proficiency. The MD-S App is optimized to ensure it does not compromise the overall functionality of the user’s device including excessively draining the battery or requiring more storage than is customary.
Maintenance and Evolution:
The MD-S App is structured to facilitate ongoing maintenance, including regular updates to both the software and clinical content. The MD-S App design allows for scalability and for the introduction of additional future features.