Natural Language Processing in Healthcare Informatics: Challenges and Future Directions

Editors: A. Shankar, Saranya Jayapalan, Basant. K. Tiwary

Natural Language Processing in Healthcare Informatics: Challenges and Future Directions

ISBN: 979-8-89881-493-9
eISBN: 979-8-89881-492-2 (Online)

Introduction

Natural Language Processing in Healthcare Informatics: Challenges and Future Directions is an exploration into the transformative role of NLP and AI technologies in modern healthcare systems. The book delves into foundational concepts, advanced deep learning techniques, and cutting-edge applications of NLP in clinical decision support, electronic health record analysis, medical literature mining, patient-provider communication, and personalised medicine.

Structured across ten detailed chapters, the volume covers both theoretical foundations and practical implementations. Early chapters introduce AI and NLP in healthcare, highlighting applications in telehealth, wearable technologies, robotic surgery, and FDA-approved AI devices. Subsequent chapters examine challenges unique to healthcare NLP, including data quality and standardisation, linguistic variability, computational limitations, and ethical considerations such as bias, transparency, and patient privacy.

The book also provides in-depth insights into deep learning approaches for medical text analysis, preprocessing and annotation strategies, the evaluation of large language models for RNA interactions, and the application of Bi-LSTM architectures for advanced healthcare NLP tasks. Innovative chapters explore the role of knowledge graphs in rare disease prediction, AI and ML for focused ultrasound treatments, mathematical modelling using fuzzy numbers for healthcare NLP trends, and AI/ML integration in drug discovery and personalised medicine.


Key Features

  • - Detailed discussions and case studies on the applications of AI and NLP in healthcare, including telehealth, EHR analysis, and medical imaging.
  • - In-depth coverage of challenges in healthcare NLP encompassing data quality, linguistic variability, computational requirements, and ethical considerations.
  • - Explores deep learning techniques: RNNs, CNNs, Transformers, Bi-LSTM, and their application to medical text.
  • - Gives practical guidance on data preprocessing, annotation, and evaluation for healthcare NLP tasks.
  • - Provides insight into emerging trends by integrating theoretical concepts with real-world implementations, coding examples, and model workflows in Python and MATLAB.

Target Readership:

Researchers, students and specialised professionals in healthcare bioinformatics, computer science and biomedical engineering.

Foreword

In today's rapidly evolving healthcare technology landscape, the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Natural Language Processing (NLP) stands as a beacon of innovation and transformation. As an NLP researcher, I found this book as a comprehensive guide to navigating the complexities and opportunities presented by connecting the power of AI-driven NLP in healthcare informatics. From its foundational principles to cutting-edge applications, this book offers invaluable insights into how NLP techniques can be leveraged to unlock the potential of unstructured clinical text data, driving improvements in patient care, clinical decision-making, and biomedical research. The authors have meticulously explored both the theoretical foundations and the practical implications of these technologies, providing valuable insights for researchers, clinicians, and anyone interested in the future of healthcare. This collection is a vital resource for navigating the complex and rapidly evolving world of AI and NLP in healthcare.

As we embark on this journey through the pages of this book, we are reminded of the immense potential of AI and NLP to revolutionize the healthcare industry. Through insightful discussions, case studies, and future projections, this book serves as a resource for healthcare professionals, researchers, and stakeholders to embrace and harness the transformative power of AI-driven NLP.

This collection of chapters delves into the cutting-edge developments, challenges, and future directions of this dynamic field. From drug discovery to mental health care, and from rare disease prediction to public health surveillance, the authors explore various applications poised to revolutionize how we understand, diagnose, and treat illnesses.

I commend the editors for their dedication and expertise in compiling this comprehensive resource. I am confident that it will inspire and empower readers to embark on their own journey toward leveraging AI and NLP for the betterment of healthcare worldwide.

N. Jeyakumar
Department of Bioinformatics
Bharathiar University
Coimbatore–641 046
Tamilnadu, India