[Reading Science] Hospitals Transform from Simple Treatment Facilities to 'Bases for Technological Innovation'

Improving Diagnostic Accuracy and Speed with AI Technology
Hospitals as Laboratories, Testbeds, and Data Hubs

The traditional definition of a hospital as a "facility for treating patients' illnesses and promoting health" is evolving. Hospitals have become more than just places for treatment; they are now at the forefront of technological innovation.

With the convergence of medicine and engineering forming the field of biomedical engineering, hospitals have transformed into laboratories and testbeds for technology development, as well as the ultimate consumers of these technologies. Hospitals now serve as both the starting and finishing points for new technologies.

The advancement of biomedical engineering is creating an innovation ecosystem centered around the medical field, focusing on three key areas: AI-based imaging analysis, biomaterials and regenerative medicine, and digital twins.

Diagnosis Evolving Through Data

The most active area for biomedical engineering is undoubtedly radiology. As artificial intelligence (AI) technology has been actively introduced into hospitals, both the accuracy and speed of diagnoses have improved.

In 2020, Asan Medical Center became the first major hospital in South Korea to apply an AI-assisted chest X-ray interpretation system in clinical practice. 'VUNO Med Chest X-ray,' developed by VUNO, highlights suspected lesions with AI, thereby improving the efficiency of physicians' readings.

Asan Medical Center, Photo by Asia Economy Database

AI receives vast amounts of data from hospitals, and hospitals, in turn, enhance the reliability of precision diagnoses through AI learning. Hospitals are no longer just consumers of technology; by providing data, they have become experimental grounds that co-design technological advancements.

Yonsei University Severance Hospital is collaborating with Samsung Medison to develop an AI ultrasound diagnostic solution. By advancing algorithms that learn from actual patient images to automatically analyze and classify lesions, the goal is to simultaneously improve diagnostic convenience and accuracy for medical staff. This is a representative case of a hospital transforming from a mere consumer into a co-developer.

Yonsei Medical Center Severance Hospital. Asia Economy DB

Radiology innovation is accelerating overseas as well. In the United States, GE Healthcare has partnered with Google to build a cloud-based imaging platform, while the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS) has created a nationwide imaging data platform that is open to startups.

AI companies use this data to validate new interpretation algorithms, and the government incorporates the results into the public healthcare system, establishing a virtuous cycle.

All these processes are coordinated by the hospital's "digital control center." Large hospitals monitor data from emergency rooms, wards, and imaging centers in real time, managing both patient status and hospital operations. Dashboards display patients' vital signs, test results, and AI reports in real time, enabling medical staff to optimize the overall flow of the hospital.

From the Laboratory to the Patient's Side

Another axis of biomedical engineering's evolution is biomaterials and regenerative medicine. For new treatment technologies to reach patients, they must undergo clinical validation in hospitals.

Professor Cha Hyungjun's team at Pohang University of Science and Technology, in collaboration with Seoul National University Hospital, successfully completed preclinical research on a 3D bioprinted cartilage material based on mussel adhesive protein. This material, once implanted in damaged cartilage, binds strongly with surrounding tissue to promote natural regeneration. This is a prime example of basic research being transformed into actual treatments through the clinical expertise of hospitals.

The Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology is conducting regenerative therapies using stem cell-derived ectodermal materials, some of which have already passed phase 1 clinical trials. Research targeting the treatment of intractable diseases such as stroke aftereffects and Parkinson's disease is advancing to actual clinical stages through hospital validation.

Imi-Yeon, head of the Smart Healthcare Center at Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital, stated, "It is necessary to expand projects that can be jointly validated by medical institutions and engineering researchers," adding, "Financial and institutional support should be provided so that startups can collaborate with hospitals to develop and introduce new technologies."

Globally, regenerative medicine is also experiencing rapid growth. A joint research institute between Harvard University and MIT in the United States is developing 3D bioprinted organs, while Osaka University in Japan succeeded in the world's first clinical trial of retinal cell transplantation using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS). The European Union is also actively supporting research on biomaterials and regenerative medicine through the 'Horizon Europe' program.

Hospitals remain at the center of these processes. Patient data from clinical trials, laboratory research results, and achievements from corporate collaborations are all connected in a single network and managed centrally in the control center. Research and clinical practice are seamlessly linked in real time, significantly accelerating the commercialization of new technologies.

Virtual Humans, Real Treatments

The role of hospitals is now expanding to include digital twins that simulate treatments on virtual patients.

Seoul National University Hospital is conducting research to predict changes in blood flow before procedures by implementing a "heart digital twin" based on patient heart data. Samsung Medical Center has optimized radiation doses for liver cancer patients by applying digital simulation to their treatments.

Seoul National University Hospital. Asia Economy DB

Medicine has now entered an era where risks can be predicted and optimal treatment methods found through "virtual laboratories" before actual surgery.

Internationally, government-led initiatives are also underway, such as France's "Living Heart" project, Germany's "Human Digital Twin" project, and the development of guidelines by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Digital twins can only be completed by integrating various data such as imaging, vital signs, and clinical records. The hospital control center is also at the core of managing and coordinating all these data flows.

The Control Tower of Innovation

Hospitals are evolving into biomedical engineering control towers that encompass laboratories, testbeds, data hubs, and end users.

The government is also responding to this trend. The Ministry of Science and ICT is strengthening the connection between hospital clinical practice and corporate research and development through the "Medical Data-Centric Hospital Support Project," while the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is supporting the "Advanced Regenerative Bio Demonstration Support Center."

Major hospitals overseas have already transformed into control centers. The Cleveland Clinic in the United States houses startups within the hospital to share and manage data, and Charit? Hospital in Germany enables researchers and engineers to collaborate in the same space.

Emergency room at an overseas hospital. Provided by Pixabay

However, compared to major overseas hospitals, there are some shortcomings in domestic hospitals. Lee Giwon, CEO of medical device startup Wibrain, said, "Two conditions are necessary." He emphasized, "There must be an institutional guarantee for a 'clinical entrepreneur' track, where physicians can focus solely on research, development, and entrepreneurship without the burden of clinical duties, and hospitals must recognize startups as partners and establish regulations that fairly share intellectual property (IP) and business outcomes."

Domestic hospitals already possess abundant clinical data and advanced digital infrastructure. If systematic enhancements linking research, industry, and clinical practice are added, there is ample potential for South Korea to secure global leadership in medical AI, regenerative medicine, and digital twin fields.