The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Coimbatore Zone successfully conducted its first edition of Health Tech NXT – a conference on Health Technology on Friday in the city.

The conference, themed around AI and Digital Innovation in Healthcare, brought together healthcare experts, technological companies, medical practitioners and startups to discuss the current and future trends.

Prasanth Subramanian, Co-Founder & Director, Quadrasystems.net India Private Limited, during his Inaugural Address emphasized the healthcare industry’s transition from a reactive to a proactive approach, driven by advancements in AI Transformers.

He also highlighted that the penetration and usage of wearable health tech devices are fuelling growth towards predictive analysis in the sector. With these advancements, personalized medications are becoming a near possibility. He also highlighted a historic milestone in 2024, where, for the first time, Nobel Prizes in both Physics and Chemistry were awarded for AI-related work, underscoring AI's profound impact on shaping the future.

Dr. J.S Bhuvaneswaran, Convenor, CII Healthcare Taskforce & Director of PSG Super Specialty Hospitals, emphasized the importance of discussing AI in healthcare, stating that it is a highly relevant topic. He appreciated the Tamil Nadu government's use of image processing in tuberculosis treatment. He also mentioned that Coimbatore is experiencing an influx of population due to the city's growth and industrialization, which places a significant responsibility on the healthcare industry to make the city more hospitable.

G Radhakrishnan, Chairman, CII Coimbatore & Managing Director, Sieger Spintech Equipment Pvt Ltd, highlighted the significance of Coimbatore’s healthcare infrastructure and its potential to become a medical tourism destination.

He mentioned that India has only one-quarter of the average recommended number of healthcare professionals (2.3/1000). Technological advancements, such as AI, can help bridge this gap by enabling professionals to work more efficiently on critical tasks.

Rajesh Doraiswamy, Vice Chairman, CII Coimbatore & Joint Managing Director, Salzer Electronics Ltd, stated that technological adaptation is vital for sustainability in any field.

He also mentioned that these advancements aim to make treatments more affordable for everyone. Additionally, he noted that CII is working on policy advocacy to make Coimbatore a medical tourism destination.

The event featured insightful sessions such as "Journey of Operationalizing AI in Healthcare," "AI in Healthcare: The Hope, The Hype, The Promise & The Peril," "Advancing Your Healthcare Mission with Generative Artificial Intelligence," and Panel Discussion on “AI in Healthcare: Balancing Innovation and Ethics for Better Patient Outcomes among others, delivered by distinguished experts from the healthcare industry”.

The conference key speakers included, Dr Suman CPS, Co-Convenor, CII Healthcare Task Force, & Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, VGM Hospital, Hariprasad Babu, Principal Solutions Architect – APAC, Dedalus, Ramya, Head of Operations, Lifesigns, U.K. Ananthapadmanabhan, Founder & CEO, Tenxhealth Technologies Pvt Ltd, Dr. Sundara Kumar Medical Informatics Officer & Consultant Pulmonologist, GKNM Hospital, Shashank Chinchli, Solutions Architect, Amazon Web Services, Raghav Krishna Ranganathan Founder, Atatri Design Private Limited. The sessions had participants of over 120 delegates.