A symbiotic relationship for optimal AI-powered healthcare
As health systems around the world consider how to address the issue of burden and burnout, healthcare is looking to artificial intelligence (AI) to optimise processes, streamlining workflows and accelerating diagnosis and treatment, in order to create better outcomes for patients. At the same time, the pharmaceutical industry is moving forward at speed with employment of AI and automated processes within drug targeting and development. A crucial requirement with all of this is a unified platform.
So it is that OPEN Health, a global provider of scientific communications, HEOR and market access, patient engagement, and consulting, has entered into a partnership with fusion, an AI and machine learning (AI) solutions provider, to deliver AI-powered healthcare communications. fusion’s AI capabilities will be exclusively deployed across OPEN Health’s extensive global client base - which includes 49 of the top 50 pharmaceutical – looking to redefine the boundaries of what AI can accomplish in healthcare.
Steve Duryee, chief operating and transformation officer at OPEN Health, and Mary McGregor, founder and CEO of fusion, discussed the nature of the partnership with pharmaphorum.
A commitment to harnessing the power of cutting-edge technologies
OPEN Health and fusion already had a long-standing relationship at the leadership level. An elite-level technology partner, fusion will help OPEN Health deliver highly innovative and advanced technology solutions to biopharmaceutical clients, leading the AI agenda.
“We've seen many of our competitors prior to us making big splash announcements around their initiatives in AI and even in the areas of Gen AI,” said Duryee. “But, as you peel back the onion, there really hasn't been anything materially tangible in terms of evidence addressing the business challenges that our clients are facing.”
“While we may not have been first, we're committed to being the best,” he continued. “We took the time before coming forward, investing and working extensively with fusion and Mary [McGregor] and her team in building demonstrable capabilities that address specific business problems and provide real solutions for our clients.”
Those specific business challenges are targeted with OPEN Health’s solutions around KEE mapping in the KOL space, congress, and disease area insights. It also has internal productivity improvement capabilities that have been built to enable the company’s solutions to be executed more productively and efficiently in the area of clinical trials tracking. This, indeed, is the very premise of the partnership.
“I think, first and foremost, given the scale and size of OPEN Health and the rich heritage and trust they have with their client base, that automatically provides the platform for us to begin having a dialogue with those clients about how we can support them [to] embrace new technologies,” explained McGregor. “Because, I think it's fair to say, there's a lot of curiosity around AI, but not a lot of real world evidence or use case around it. Working in partnership with OPEN Health, it legitimises the AI providers, to be able to say that the AI we create is designed to meet a specific challenge: we develop the AI models around each challenge.”
Building a bespoke AI alliance
AI’s automation capabilities are driving efficiencies in the healthcare sector by transforming manual tasks through machine learning models. This transformation enables the production of more detailed outputs across various work streams, potentially resulting in productivity gains.
“Advanced AI models are enabling the delivery of more personalised scientific communications,” noted McGregor. “In the healthcare industry, the goal is to improve patients’ lives, quality of life, and outcomes. This requires vast amounts of data and tools to interpret that data effectively.”
She adds, “There’s now potential to craft personalised scientific communications based on nuanced and complex data.”
AI-driven insights may enable healthcare professionals to make more informed decisions, potentially benefiting patients. Integrating AI into daily workflows could help organisations operate more efficiently, possibly freeing up resources for strategic initiatives.
Whereas other companies may opt for off-the-shelf AI, fusion develops custom code to build and deploy models, a unique asset that McGregor believes will help OPEN Health to address specific client challenges more efficiently.
“We develop all of our AI software in Python,” she says. “We write the code that powers the software. That gives us the power to handle and manipulate quantum amounts of data sets that, in turn, allow us then to drive decision-making recommendations to our clients.”
Exploring a new type of partnership
The launch of OpenAI’s ChatGPT has thrust AI into the spotlight, marking a pivotal moment in technological advancement. However, the pharmaceutical industry is still in the early stages of AI adoption, presenting both challenges and opportunities for companies in this sector.
“When OpenAI released ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI suddenly became the buzzword,” explained McGregor. “Everyone wants to do it, but they don’t really know what ‘it’ is. Currently, the acceptance and adoption of AI depend on stakeholders’ understanding, and no pharmaceutical company has taken a leadership position on it yet.”
To progress in AI adoption, pharmaceutical companies must invest in educational initiatives to demystify AI technologies. As McGregor and Duryee observed, understanding the nuances of machine learning, deep learning, and neural networks is crucial for effective AI utilisation. These efforts will equip teams with the knowledge needed to leverage AI tools, potentially fostering a culture of innovation within the industry.
A shift towards co-creation and experimentation could be beneficial for driving AI innovation. Pharmaceutical companies may benefit from collaborating closely with AI partners, experimenting with new solutions, and learning from failures. This approach could accelerate innovation and help ensure that AI solutions are tailored to specific business challenges.
McGregor emphasised the transformative potential of this technology: “This feels different because it is different. We’re in the fourth industrial revolution with personalised medicine, quantum computing, and robotics. We’re actually on the cusp of the fifth because of automation capabilities. What we’re seeing goes beyond that – we’re at the intersection where computer programs are so powerful, they’re not just able to think and act like humans, but they’re now able to rationalise because they’re learning.”
As AI evolves, it may significantly impact patient outcomes and healthcare delivery. Organisations that welcome collaboration to embrace a technology-led approach could be well-positioned to navigate the changing landscape of healthcare innovation.
Sharing his perspective, Duryee said: “The classic agency model is coming to an end. That may be a provocative statement, but the reality of it is, in order to survive and thrive, organisations like ours need to transform from being services led to technology-led. And that starts with being able to produce something and demonstrate that the “something” has tangible value and goes beyond just a concept. We have done that with fusion”
This ethos of collaboration forms the heart of OPEN Health and fusion’s alliance. The work, both parties are keen to emphasise, goes beyond the stereotypical company-to-company relationship, where two separate teams work alongside each other. As Duryee explained, this is a convergence.
“What’s been great about this partnership is that Mary and her team came to the table with the frame,” he said. “We then added the business domain, the specific business challenge we’re trying to address, the scale, the ability to get access to the clientele because of the relationship and the pedigree that OPEN Health brings to the table.”
“Partnership doesn’t do the relationship justice,” he concluded. “This is a different type of model. They are part of the fabric of OPEN Health. It’s not that classical strategic alliance.”
About the authors
Steve Duryee joined OPEN Health in 2024 and is the Chief Operating and Transformation Officer. He is charged with shaping the future of OPEN Health by driving growth in the US and evolving OPEN Health’s go-to-market strategy. With over three decades of experience building and operating life sciences services, software, and technology firms, he is well equipped to drive the operational maturity and growth mindset needed for OPEN Health to thrive in the highly competitive and dynamic healthcare communications and consulting space.
Mary McGregor is an expert in building AI, data, and tech-based solutions. She is the founder of several disruptive agencies including fusion. A forward-thinking entrepreneur with a strong track record of developing novel products to address the pharmaceutical industry's most pressing challenges, collectively her agencies have sold for over $65 million.
About OPEN Health
OPEN Health unites world-class scientific, strategic, and creative expertise to solve complex challenges for global biopharma. We are a flexible, global organization, creating high-performing strategic partnerships with our clients. We embrace our different perspectives and strengths to deliver innovative solutions that have a positive impact on commercial and patient outcomes. OPEN Health unlocks possibilities across consulting, HEOR and market access, scientific communications, and patient engagement. To learn more, visit www.openhealthgroup.com.
About fusion
fusion specialises in delivering AI and ML solutions. Known for its advanced technology and innovative approach, fusion aims to transform the pharmaceutical industry by integrating AI-first solutions. To learn more, visit www.fusionagency.solutions
