Waypoint developing early warning system using artificial intelligence to improve patient safety
Waypoint is at the leading edge of research that will make care safer for patients by using artificial intelligence (Al) to anticipate when they may be at risk of mental health deterioration. This is the first project of its kind in an Ontario psychiatric hospital.
Knowing ahead of time that a patient may be at risk of harm can help us develop intervention strategies, which may include more monitoring, 1-on-1 engagement, support to use coping skills, and increased access to enjoyable activities.
Dr. Andrea Waddell, Medical Director, Quality Standards and Clinical Informatics
Conducted by the Waypoint Research Institute (WRI) and in partnership with York University, the project relies on AI’s ability to analyze huge quantities of historical and real-time data, and then identify patterns and produce insights. Waypoint researchers will be able to create a predictive model based on factors that may signal an impending crisis for a patient — ideally alerting care providers up to 72 hours in advance so interventions can be put in place.
This type of early warning system is not uncommon in acute medical settings, but incorporating machine learning algorithms and natural language processing is new to mental health.
Dr. Waddell’s team has determined the variables for an alerting system and has refined the model on three years of patient data. Clinicians, patients and families will provide input at every step to guide the selection of the final algorithm. Once finalized, the alert will be piloted in some units before broad adoption.
Being open to new approaches is so important when it comes to mental health and addiction care. Studying the use of artificial intelligence is a great example of how we’re innovating while keeping safety at the heart of everything we do. Care plans that consider patients’ specific risk factors, treatment history and response patterns — developed thanks to the power of AI — will be a wonderful addition to the person-centred care we already provide.
Dr. Kevin Young, Vice-President, Medical Affairs, and Chief of Staff
Dr. Waddell and her team of researchers have been working on this project since 2022. The project is another example of the groundbreaking contributions taking place by WRI to advance understanding of mental health and addiction, and improve lives locally and around the world.