- Aston University is to host Birmingham’s first ever artificial intelligence and healthcare summer school
- Data science and AI have the potential to transform how healthcare will be delivered in the future.
- The event is organised by the University’s Aston Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research and Application (ACAIRA).
Aston University is to host Birmingham’s first ever summer school about artificial intelligence (AI) and healthcare.
Aimed at the next generation of AI leaders, it will be taking place between 11 and 13 September.
The event has been organised by the Aston Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research and Application (ACAIRA), with support from the University’s Engineering for Health Research Centre (E4H).
The summer school is mainly aimed at postgraduates with a background in AI, data science, machine learning, healthcare or related disciplines. They will benefit from finding out about some of the latest methods and technologies in machine learning with a focus on healthcare.
Data science and AI are being developed to bring together innovation and patient care and have the potential to transform how healthcare will be delivered in the future.
The three days will involve lectures by guest speakers on topics including ethical AI, AI applications in healthcare and healthcare in the real world. Participants will be able to benefit from mentorships to improve teamwork and developing project proposals.
The event is open to anyone studying for a relevant MSc or PhD and is free of charge with lunch included.
Dr Ulysses Bernardet, one of the organisers and a lecturer in computer science said:
“Birmingham has a lot of expertise across the topics of AI and healthcare, and we are delighted to offer the first such event in the city.
“Those who attend the summer school will benefit from the expertise at Aston University and our guest speakers. The event will have real-world relevance as participants will be asked to develop and pitch their own project ideas to create AI-powered solutions for pressing problems in healthcare.
“The three days will contribute to achieving one of the University strategic aims for 2030 which is to be recognised as a leading digital enterprise in the region.”
One of the speakers will be Dr Arvind Rajasekaran, consultant respiratory physician at Sandwell And West Birmingham NHS Hospitals Trust. He said: “I am looking forward to an engaging discussion with the participants around the challenges and opportunities that AI brings to healthcare systems worldwide.
“As a front-line respiratory physician, I bear witness to the mounting challenges posed by rising health care demands, ageing population and rising multi-morbidity.
“As a digital health leader, I am acutely aware of the potential for health care AI to positively impact this health eco-system.
“And as a student of healthcare AI, however, I have to admit, there is much to be done to enable responsible deployment of health AI at scale.
“Events such as this promote the value of interdisciplinary collaboration and it is a pleasure to be part of the summer school.
"I have had the chance to collaborate with ACAIRA members on a number of research projects looking at explainable AI in chest radiology and pleased to be able to say, one such collaboration with the team led by Dr Shereen Fouad will be published in print soon."
Although attendees are expected to be early career researchers or advanced undergraduate students with relevant backgrounds, there is no requirement to have specific coding skills.
Spanning over three full days the event will be hosted at the Design Factory Birmingham which is on Aston University’s campus near the city centre.
Dr Antonio Fratini, reader and director of the Engineering for Health Research Centre said: “It is exciting to see the University at the forefront of AI technologies development in the healthcare domain.
“Responsible, explainable and ethical use of any new technology development particularly in the medtech and healthtech areas is at the heart of Aston University 2030 strategy”.
- Notes to editors
For over a century, Aston University’s enduring purpose has been to make our world a better place through education, research and innovation, by enabling our students to succeed in work and life, and by supporting our communities to thrive economically, socially and culturally.
Aston University’s history has been intertwined with the history of Birmingham, a remarkable city that once was the heartland of the Industrial Revolution and the manufacturing powerhouse of the world.
Born out of the First Industrial Revolution, Aston University has a proud and distinct heritage dating back to our formation as the School of Metallurgy in 1875, the first UK College of Technology in 1951, gaining university status by Royal Charter in 1966, and becoming The Guardian University of the Year in 2020.
Building on our outstanding past, we are now defining our place and role in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (and beyond) within a rapidly changing world.
For media inquiries in relation to this release, contact Nicola Jones, Press and Communications Manager, on (+44) 7825 342091 or email: n.jones6@aston.ac.uk