Teen Parliament 2024: Zainab Rehman’s digital plan to slash emergency room wait times using power of AI
Year 11 student and Teen Parliament entrance, Zainab Rehman plans to transform the way South Australians access healthcare with AI and is in for a chance to win a scholarship of $10,000.
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Aspiring young surgeon Zainab Rehman wants to revolutionise the way South Australians access medical care by harnessing the power of AI to connect patients from across the state to health professionals in minutes.
Inspired by her family’s own experience dealing with long wait times, the Mitcham Girls High School student has devised “MedConnectSA”, a digital program to reduce wait times by providing users with easy access to medical expertise.
“A couple months ago, my dad actually had a really bad psoriasis problem which basically causes inflammation in his joints so we went to the emergency room,” she said.
“I remember just being in the emergency room, waiting for about two hours to talk to a doctor or health professional just to look at him and be sent home with panadol because it wasn’t much of a big deal.
“AI is taking over the world, everyone uses AI, it’s a part of our daily lives and it’s getting smarter and smarter and has so much potential to transform how we approach health.”
The program combines remote patient monitoring, AI-driven diagnostics, and telemedicine to provide effective and personalised care and is just one of the many ideas put forward by this year’s applicants for The Advertiser’s Teen parliament.
“With the integration of detailed health education modules, MedConnectSA encourages preventive care and gives communities the tools and basic knowledge needed to take control of their own health,” she said.
“This program not only addresses the problems facing healthcare today, but it also positions South Australia as an expert in modern digital health.”
AI has already been introduced into SA hospital’s with the “Adelaide Score” used to free up beds and ease ramping in May last year.
The Adelaide-developed AI accurately predicts when surgery patients should be ready for discharge, freeing up beds by ensuring patients who are medically-fit for discharge aren’t waiting long periods to be signed out.
It’s also not the first time the state’s health system has been a focus among Teen parliament with past entrants Will Barrett and Teresa Bueti, advocating for better pay for healthcare workers and career counselling to encourage students to pursue careers in health.
Time is running out to apply to be one of the 30 students participating in the March 8 event where teens will get to rub shoulders with politicians and changemakers.
Of these 30, 10 standout students will each be awarded scholarships of $10,000.
Applicants from Years 10, 11 and 12 are encouraged to submit their ideas relating to topics such as state development, the economy and social issues before applications close soon.
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