1Life uses artificial intelligence to fast-track medical diagnosis
By Almira Louise S. Martinez, Reporter
1LIFE, INC., a tech company that conducts medical missions nationwide, seeks to reduce the long process of medical diagnosis in the Philippines through its artificial intelligence (AI) platform, DocMate AI.
1Life, Inc. President Niño L. Namoco said the shortage in healthcare professionals in the Philippines causes doctors to be swamped with patients, leading some of them to overlook their patients’ other diseases.
A report from the University of the Philippines showed there are 3.7 doctors per 10,000 Filipinos, far from the 10 doctors recommended by the World Health Organization.
“That’s why we made this innovation, the DocMate AI, which helps doctors make accurate diagnoses and become more efficient,” Mr. Namoco told reporters at the platform launch on Friday.
The medical history, symptoms and test results gathered for each patient are uploaded on the AI platform so it could recommend all possible diagnoses. With the help of the AI platform, a doctor can diagnose 50 to 100 patients a day.
“AI can only suggest based on all data,” Barangay Health and Wellness Party-list Rep. Minguita Padilla said. “The beauty of data is it won’t miss anything,” the doctor said at the same briefing in Filipino.
Although it is time-efficient, some doctors still hesitate to trust the AI platform.
“At first, some doctors feel that this will become a replacement, but again, this is just a tool,” Mr. Namoco said. “The challenge is for the doctor to accept that this is a tool that you can use to help you to be more accurate, to be more efficient with your diagnosis.”
The lengthy consultation process also motivated 1Life to create the AI-powered doctor’s assistant. Mr. Namoco said the typical consultation process lasts at least four days in the Philippines.
He noted that patients usually line up the whole day to see a doctor. After the initial check-up, the physician would ask for medical laboratory tests which could take a day or two.
After getting the laboratory results, patients spend another day lining up at the clinic or hospital to present laboratory results and get diagnosed.
“Whether you’re from a far-flung barangay or are in Metro Manila, you face that four-day problem,” Mr. Namoco said.
1Life and DocMate AI minimize the process to one hour and thirty minutes because procedures like complete blood count (CBC), ultrasound, X-ray, urinalysis and electrocardiogram (ECG) can be done at the medical mission.
1Life holds eight to 15 medical missions daily, with four to six attending doctors at each mission. In 2024, the company had 500,000 patients in more than 70 provinces nationwide. It aims to help one million patients by year-end.
