[ba-unrev-talk] augmented medical diagnosis
http://www.boston.com/globe/magazine/2002/0714/coverstory.htm (01)
"A computer program that provides vast amounts of information for
diagnosing and treating patients could revolutionize the practice of
medicine. So why won't physicians use it? " (02)
For me, seeing an article on Dr. Lawrence Weed is of great
interest. That's because, in 1985, I formed a partnership with Dr. John
Rose and we build a medical expert system (first built on an Apple II in
Forth, later migrated to IBM PC in Forth and to Mac, under StaxPert written
by our new partner Dan Wood (StaxPert being an inference engine for
HyperCard). While doing our "competitive benchmarking", we discovered Dr.
Weed's PKC -- Problem Knowledge Coupler. (03)
Our product was first named "First Opinion" and later recast to a more
generalized "DOC" Decisions On Computers. (04)
Here's more from the page about Weed's PKC: (05)
"Cross has a trick, an unusual tool he sometimes pulls out of his virtual
black bag. The tool is not a stethoscope, which amplifies his ability to
hear a heartbeat, or an MRI, which makes up for his inability to see
through flesh. Instead, it is a piece of computer software that makes up
for the limits of the human brain. The software, called the Problem
Knowledge Coupler (PKC), was conceived by an old Vermont friend of his, Dr.
Lawrence L. Weed. Instead of listing the symptoms of a disease and asking a
doctor to choose the closest fit, as some medical Web sites do, Weed's
program asks a doctor to first answer a long list of questions about the
patient's troubles. Then, up comes the most likely diagnoses and ways to
test them out. The program helps doctors match (or "couple") the patterns
of a patient's problems with the relevant knowledge that exists, perhaps
buried deep in a textbook or journal article, to recognize and treat those
problems." (06)
Now, is that an augmentation system, or what? (07)
Jack (08)