Microsoft, NYU, Novartis Launch AI-Driven Heart Health Equity Network

The Novartis Foundation, Microsoft AI for Health, and the New York University (NYU) School of Global Public Health have partnered to launch the AI4HealthyCities Health Equity Network, an initiative to use data analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) to combat heart health inequities, according to a press release shared with HealthITAnalytics.

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) create a major global health burden in the US and worldwide, with the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting that CVDs are the leading cause of death globally, killing 17.9 million people per year.

WHO notes that access to healthcare interventions is crucial to improving CVD prevention and outcomes, but also addressing the conditions in which people live and work is key. This is especially true in cities like New York City, where disparities are more common for certain urban populations.

“Where people live and work in New York, and their degree of social and economic disadvantage, have a bigger impact on their risk of developing cardiovascular disease than their access to healthcare,” said José Pagán, PhD, professor of public health policy and management at the NYU School of Global Public Health and chair of the board of directors of NYC Health + Hospitals, New York City’s public hospital system, in the press release.

AI4HealthyCities aims to tackle heart health challenges by using data and analytics to gain insights into these conditions, many of which are economic, environmental, or related to social determinants of population health. Using these insights, the initiative hopes to provide decision-makers and stakeholders with knowledge to improve heart health equity and outcomes.

“This initiative will give us better insights into the cardiovascular health of New Yorkers in an effort to identify the most pressing issues to address and shape our city’s policies,” Pagán stated.

According to the press release, the Novartis Foundation will support the initiative’s implementation by providing population and cardiovascular health expertise. NYU and Microsoft will lead the research, gathering, analyzing, and managing data related to CVD and SDOH to generate insights to be shared with city policymakers and other stakeholders.

This is not the first time SDOH and other data have been used to combat chronic diseases like CVDs. Population health data has proven valuable in the past, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, for stakeholders looking to improve health outcomes. Using this data with health equity in mind has significant potential.

“Combining anonymized population data from many different sources enables us to use machine learning to go down to street level in assessing levels of cardiovascular risk. If properly applied this could revolutionize preventive interventions in heart health,” said Juan Lavista Ferres, chief data scientist at Microsoft, in the press release.

The network launched in New York City. The press release states that launches in other cities worldwide will be announced soon.

AI4HealthyCities builds on the Novartis Foundation’s previous CARDIO4Cities initiative, which focused on improving citywide responses to cardiovascular risk in São Paulo, Brazil; Dakar, Senegal; and Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.