Google Launches New Healthcare Features - Search & Android

Google's New Healthcare Initiatives

On Tuesday, Google revealed a suite of new products and features specifically designed for healthcare applications. These advancements include enhanced overviews within Google Search for health-related inquiries, new APIs for medical records, and innovative, health-focused AI models built on an “open” architecture.

Improvements to Google Search for Health

Google is leveraging AI and refined ranking algorithms to broaden the scope of “knowledge panel” responses. This expansion now encompasses thousands of health topics. Support for healthcare queries has also been added in Spanish, Portuguese, and Japanese on mobile devices.

Previously, Google Search provided knowledge panel answers for common ailments like influenza or the common cold. However, this update significantly increases the breadth of topics covered by these informative panels.

Introducing "What People Suggest"

A new Search feature, “What People Suggest,” is being launched on mobile in the U.S. This feature aims to highlight content originating from users who share similar experiences related to health conditions.

For example, a search for exercises beneficial for individuals with arthritis will now incorporate insights gathered from various online forums, curated by AI.

This functionality builds upon existing features like Google’s personal health stories on YouTube. It appears strategically designed to retain users within Google Search, rather than directing them to platforms like Reddit for health advice.

“Individuals utilize Search to access trustworthy medical information from experts, but also value the perspectives of others facing similar health challenges,” stated Karen DeSalvo, Google’s chief health officer, in a blog post shared with TechCrunch. “Through the application of AI, we can effectively organize diverse viewpoints from online discussions into easily understandable themes, enabling users to quickly grasp prevailing opinions.”

Health Connect and Medical Records APIs

Google also announced the global launch of new medical records APIs for its Health Connect platform, available on Android devices. These APIs facilitate the collection of data from healthcare providers.

Users can now view this data across various applications and access it more readily on devices like smartphones, according to Google.

“These APIs empower applications to read and write medical record information, including allergies, medications, immunizations, and lab results, in the standardized FHIR format,” DeSalvo explained. “With these additions, Health Connect now supports over 50 data types spanning activity, sleep, nutrition, vitals, and medical records – streamlining the connection between your daily health data and information from your physician’s office.”

Pixel Watch 3 and Loss of Pulse Detection

Google announced that the Loss of Pulse Detection feature on its Pixel Watch 3 smartwatch, which has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), will be available by the end of March in the U.S.

This feature is designed to detect a loss of pulse, potentially indicating conditions like cardiac arrest, respiratory failure, overdose, or poisoning. It will automatically initiate a call to emergency services if the user is unresponsive.

New AI Models for Drug Discovery: TxGemma

Furthermore, Google unveiled new AI models for drug discovery, named TxGemma. This follows the earlier release of the Gemini AI models, designed for multimodal healthcare applications.

TxGemma is scheduled for release in the coming weeks.