The Centre for Technology Adoption for Aging in the North (CTAAN) at UNBC will use its connections across the region to introduce and validate innovative new technologies in healthcare aimed at advancing patient outcomes and equity in treatment.
CTAAN is involved in a national research initiative that aims to revolutionize wound care treatment, using artificial intelligence technologies to standardize treatment and improve patient outcomes.
Healthcare education, wound care education and screening tools have been historically developed for and from lighter skin tones, resulting in disproportionately poor outcomes for patients with darker skin tones.
Diabetes wounds alone are the cause of 80 per cent of major amputations in Indigenous populations due to limited accessibility and equity of remote wound care.
Digital, Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster for digital technologies, announced a co-investment with Swift Medical, a global leader in digital wound care, to deploy three pioneering technology tools poised to transform patient care by offering better wound evaluations, reducing variability in treatment approaches and identifying risks more accurately.
Working in collaboration with the National Research Council, CTAAN is one of a group of partners validating the project.
“This research has the potential to significantly impact accessibility to treatment and patient outcomes in northern and rural communities,” Dr. Richard McAloney, the Centre’s director, said. “CTAAN is uniquely positioned to introduce these innovative new technologies to the region."
“We’ve developed the connections, partnerships and processes that allow us to test, pilot, adapt and implement new technologies in real-world settings throughout rural and northern B.C. and beyond,” Dr. Shannon Freeman, CTAAN's academic director, said.
“Digital is excited to build upon the over 5 years of investments we’ve made in applied AI with this latest announcement,” says Nadia Shaikh-Naeem, Vice President of Programs at Digital, said. “We look forward to the potential of the partnerships within the Advanced AI Wound Care Network to deploy Swift Medical’s enhanced wound care solution within northern, rural and Indigenous communities by working alongside partners such as University of Northern British Columbia’s Centre for Technology Adoption for Aging in the North, Brightshores Health System and Giishkaandago'Ikwe Health Services. This latest announcement is an example of how Canada can increase equitable access and better health outcomes for all Canadians through AI adoption and partnerships such as these.”
