In medicine, how do we machine learn anything real?

Patterns (N Y)

Department of Global Health, School of Public Health, Boston University, Boston MA, USA.

Published: January 2022

AI Article Synopsis

  • Machine learning in healthcare often relies on data and labels that are falsely assumed to represent objective truths, but this can lead to ineffective systems.
  • Biases in healthcare data stem from a long history of discrimination, highlighting the need for careful research approaches rather than naive applications.
  • The goal is to identify and address these biases within machine learning models to instigate changes in healthcare practices, ultimately aiming to reduce health disparities.

Article Abstract

Machine learning has traditionally operated in a space where data and labels are assumed to be anchored in objective truths. Unfortunately, much evidence suggests that the "embodied" data acquired from and about human bodies does not create systems that function as desired. The complexity of health care data can be linked to a long history of discrimination, and research in this space forbids naive applications. To improve health care, machine learning models must strive to recognize, reduce, or remove such biases from the start. We aim to enumerate many examples to demonstrate the depth and breadth of biases that exist and that have been present throughout the history of medicine. We hope that outrage over algorithms automating biases will lead to changes in the underlying practices that generated such data, leading to reduced health disparities.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8767288PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.patter.2021.100392DOI Listing

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