Subject: Med Info

Instructor: Aaron Jess Vergara

Name/Course-Yr : Rugene N. Berato, Medicine-2

GOOGLE IN HEALTHCARE 2020

A. SUMMARY

Google reports that 7% of their daily searches are health related. Google is number one in
being responsible for digital health start-up. In 2018, Google’s revenue increased by 23 percent.
In February, Google partnered with Flywheel to provide clinical researchers with cloud technology
for medical imaging and research. Google also partnered with Verily for a program to screen
medical images for diabetic retinopathy and diabetic macular edema.

In April, Google disbanded its Al advisory board due to disagreements. The Al advisory
board is responsible for reviewing its artificial intelligence solutions in healthcare. On June, a
patient from University of Chicago Medical Center filed a lawsuit complaining that the hospital’s
partnership violated HIPAA. In August, the partners moved to dismiss the lawsuit. In 2014, Google
acquired U.K. startup Deepmind which focuses on artificial intelligence research and mobile tools
to improve patient care and clinical workflows.

On October 2, Google Cloud and EHR company Meditech entered into a partnership. It
offered cloud as a service subscription. On the same month, Google appointed Karen DeSalvo,
MD, as the chief health officer that will advise Google on providers, physicians and nurses. Google
also added an artificial intelligence, voice-enabled digital assistant named Suki. Suki aims to help
clinicians complete administrative tasks. On Nov. 1, Google acquired Fitbit that has database for
consumers’ health and wellness.

At the HLTH healthcare conference in Las Vegas, Google Health Head David Feinberg,
MD that the company aims to provide search functions that integrate with the EHR to help with
administrative works. He also addressed the strategies to reduce false information in Google search
and Youtube. On November, Google planned to post more than 100,000 X-ray images online
before the NIH stepped in. The partners ended the partnership because NIH told google to delete
all the information from its servers.

On November 11, concerns about the partnership of Google and St. Louis-based Ascension
or the Project Nightingale were brought up. It was the privacy of patients’ personal health
information. On November 13, the Office of Civil Rights of HHS investigated about the Project
Nightingale to ensure HIPAA was implemented properly.

Google Health’s artificial intelligence team claimed that the technology they created in
detecting chest radiographs complications has the same accuracy as radiologists. Google recruited
Jacqueline Shreibati, MD, CMO to its team on December to assist with its research efforts.
B. IDENTIFICATION OF THE MAIN ISSUES

The main issue is whether or not Google violates the privacy of data of its consumers. It is
stated in paragraph no. 7 that a former patient of University of Chicago Medical Center filed a
lawsuit concerning the records that has date stamps when a patient checked in and out of the
hospital. It is in the patient’s argument that his/her security was at stake and his/her privacy was
violated.

It was also cited in paragraph no. 11 that there has been concerns outlining the partnership
between google and St. Louis-Ascension and the patients’ personal health information. These
patients’ personal health information were gathered to create health care and solutions and that
150 employees have direct access to it.

C. ANALYSIS OF THE KEY ISSUES

In this era where almost everything can possibly be accessed through the aid of internet,
the issue of data privacy is becoming an issue. Data privacy mainly boils down to security.

Google, being the world’s most distinguished search engine and data provider, is being
questioned about the data they upload in their server. Google’s rapid growth since incorporation
has triggered a chain of products, acquisitions, and partnerships beyond Google's core search
engine. Hence, google has garnered a wide array of information, may it be private or public. The
issue of data privacy comes in bringing the question whether google violates the privacy of its
consumers and possibly putting its consumers’ security at stake. Google Health, as one of Google’s
services, is one of the concern team in this issue.

D. ALTERNATIVE COURSE OF ACTION

Privacy, in some cases is subjective. A data that seem to be private for a person may not
be the same case for another person. Information per se is vital and useful nowadays. Without
important data and information, we may not be able to solve a particular problem. Having the
dilemma of violating one’s privacy, google and its partners may come up with alternative actions.

RESEARCH. A research, may be in a form of survey, may be done to ensure the

participation of their target group of people, patients in this case. It is through research that they
may know the perspective and insights of patients whose data that they will use.

ORIENTATION. A detailed information drive or orientation for the patients whose

personal data will be used in the program. Google and its partners may present to them the benefits,
pros and cons of having records that are accessible online. In this way, patients are aware that their
data can be accessed online.

WAIVER. A waiver for patients indicating its willingness to allow google and its partners
to use or access their personal data, health records in this case, in executing the target outcome of
their program. In this agreement, both parties will be protected to any possible lawsuits in the
future.
 FILTERING. An appropriate filtering of information is also vital. Filtering in a sense that
any sensitive data should be regulated. For example, the personal data of a HIV positive patient.
The hospital allowed the medical students to access the data of the said patient, including his/her
name and other important information and published it in their thesis paper. It is clearly a violation
of data privacy. It is the right of the patient not to expose his personal information, especially
his/her name, age and address. Another remarkable example is the data of COVID-19 positive
patients. We can cite that patients’ data are present in all forms of media but it is also noted that
no name is being published in TV, radio, newsprint and social media. In this way, the identity,
privacy and security are being protected.

E. OBSERVATION / RECOMMENDATION

Google venturing into the improvement of health systems is a good manifestation that
people are given the luxury of having an accessible information about health. It is helpful not only
to medical professionals but also to ordinary people. Accessing any personal records may cost a
lot; It may cost you money, time and effort. In this fast-paced generation, we opt to have
information in an instant and spend less as much as possible. This type of innovation is very useful
because we deal with information everyday and we become an effective and efficient worker if we
deliver our work fast and accurate.

However, information may also be a disadvantage of a person especially if one’s privacy

is being invaded and violated. According to the 1987 Philippine Constitution, our RIGHT TO
PRIVACY is a basic fundamental human right. We are not obliged to disclose any personal
information if it is against our will except upon lawful order of the court, or when public safety or
order requires otherwise. Thus, this scenario is applicable to the INTERNATIONAL RIGHT TO
PRIVACY which is being questioned on the health data used by Google.

In support of Google’s vision to have an exceptional google healthcare system 2020, these
Alternative Course of Action may be done in implementing their program. Doing research,
providing orientation, issuing a waiver, and appropriate filtering of information are some of the
Alternative Course of Action that can be applied to resolve the issue of Google when it comes to
publishing data.