Health care workers from Guyana Ministry of Health attended the Turning Promise Into Practice: Integrating AI Into Health Care Seminar.
The Mount Sinai Health System and the Guyana Ministry of Health recently co-hosted a seminar, “Turning Promise Into Practice: Integrating AI Into Health Care, bringing together government leaders, health care professionals, policymakers, and technology experts to discuss how artificial intelligence can be responsibly integrated into health systems.
The seminar focused on practical foundations, ethical considerations, and real-world decision-making to support safe and effective adoption of AI in health care. The day-long event in Georgetown, Guyana served as a practical roadmap for a nation rapidly positioning itself as a regional leader in digital health.
From “Artificial” to “Adaptive” Intelligence
The tone of the event, held on April 23, was set by Rachel Vreeman, MD, MS, Executive Director of Mount Sinai’s Guyana Healthcare Initiative and Director of the Arnhold Institute for Global Health at Mount Sinai. In her welcoming remarks, Dr. Vreeman emphasized how technology alone doesn’t improve health outcomes. Rather, impact comes from how thoughtfully new tools are integrated into health systems and aligned with clinical needs to strengthen patient care and support health workers.
Building on that theme, Guyana Minister of Health, Hon. Frank Anthony, MD, MPH, shared Guyana’s vision for using AI in health care. “We are not witnessing incremental changes,” he said, “but we are witnessing a transformation of the health architecture.”
His Excellency Dr. Irfaan Ali, President of Guyana, gives a Presidential Address at the AI Seminar.
His Excellency, President Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali delivered a clear wake-up call to the medical community.
“Anyone in the medical field who believes they can survive career-wise without embracing AI is living in a dream world,” President Ali said.
However, President Ali proposed a vital shift in perspective. He urged attendees to view AI not as “Artificial Intelligence” but as “Adaptive Intelligence.” In his vision, AI is a tool designed to help health care systems identify risks earlier, predict disease trends, and shift from a reactive “sick-care” model to a proactive “well-care” system.
“It is not here to replace,” President Ali said. “It is here to amplify.”
This vision is supported by substantial digital health infrastructure Guyana is currently developing, with support from Mount Sinai. Examples that speakers highlighted included:
- National Health Data Infrastructure: providing a backbone for secure data sharing
- Electronic Health Records: enabling clinicians to securely access patient records across the health system nationwide
- National Digital ID Framework: ensuring seamless patient verification
The Practical Reality: Augmenting, Not Replacing
Keynote speaker David L. Reich, MD, Chief Clinical Officer, Mount Sinai Health System, and President of The Mount Sinai Hospital, moved the conversation from high-level policy to clinical implementation. He shared how AI is already being woven into Mount Sinai’s clinical systems to improve efficiency and support decision-making.
His central theme: augmentation. Dr. Reich emphasized that AI is not about replacing doctors or nurses with “robot physicians.” Instead, it is about equipping human experts with smarter tools to make better decisions faster.
Experts from the Windreich Department of Artificial Intelligence and Human Health at Mount Sinai further demystified the technology during their “AI Basics” session. Ali Soroush, MD, MS, and Prem Timsina, ScD, stripped away the “black box” mystery—where, for example, doctors don’t know how AI recommendations are generated—explaining that AI is fundamentally about advanced pattern recognition. By identifying trends in massive datasets that the human eye might miss, AI can help clinicians diagnose conditions earlier and personalize treatments more effectively.
The Pillars of Trust: Ethics and Sovereignty
As with any technological leap, the risks are as significant as the rewards. President Ali was particularly vocal about data sovereignty, arguing that Guyana must own and control its data so that AI is guided by the country’s own priorities and realities.
Drs. Reich and Vreeman discuss AI in health care following his keynote address.
Joann Bond, Deputy Chief Parliamentary Counsel of Guyana, deepened this discussion by addressing the legal and ethical guardrails provided by the Guyana Data Protection Act of 2023. She highlighted vital data protection and privacy principles and requirements for AI and the companies that provide these tools. Her presentation identified three critical risks that must be managed:
- Algorithmic Bias: the danger of AI producing unfair results due to underrepresented or skewed data
- Lack of Transparency: the need for “explainable AI” rather than opaque conclusions
- Overreliance: ensuring clinicians maintain their judgment rather than following automated recommendations blindly
Ms. Bond also emphasized the importance of patients’ rights, data ownership, and security as a foundation for trust in AI projects and tools.
Community-Led Innovation
The vision for AI in Guyana extends far beyond the hospital walls of Georgetown, Guyana’s capital. The government is exploring AI-powered kiosks and self-testing centers in remote communities and places of worship to expand access to preventive care and help ensure that technological advances reach the most vulnerable populations.
The audience at the AI Seminar.
Jeb Weisman, PhD, Director of Global Health Informatics at Mount Sinai’s Arnhold Institute for Global Health, delivered the seminar’s final presentation, providing a practical framework for evaluating AI tools. His message was simple: prioritize people, process, technology, and operations over hype. He encouraged attendees to focus on clinical validity and sustainability rather than flashy sales presentations by AI vendors.
Shaping the Future
The seminar concluded with live demonstrations of AI tools currently being used at Mount Sinai, giving participants a tangible look at how these technologies can support health care in practice.
Guyana is undergoing an economic and health system transformation. By integrating AI into the national health strategy, the country is doing more than just upgrading its equipment; it is building a “knowledge-driven” health system.
One thing is certain: Guyana is no longer waiting for the future of health care to arrive. Through strategic partnerships, investments in digital infrastructure, and a focus on ethical, sovereign data, it is actively building it.
Jeb Weisman, PhD
Jeb Weisman, PhD, is Director of Global Health Informatics at the Arnhold Institute for Global Health and Assistant Professor of Global Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
The AI seminar was part of Mount Sinai’s broader work in Guyana through the Government of Guyana’s National Healthcare Initiative. The Government of Guyana, Mount Sinai, and Hess Corporation are collaborating to transform Guyana’s public health system by 2030, with high-quality health services accessible to all citizens.