Beyond the Hype: Dr Noor Hisham breaks down what AI really means for healthcare

IN the rapidly evolving landscape of modern medicine, few subjects generate as much debate as Artificial Intelligence (AI). Will machine learning eventually replace the human touch, or will it simply become the ultimate tool in a doctor’s arsenal?

For former Health Director-General Noor Hisham Abdullah, the man who guided Malaysia through some of its most complex modern health crises, the answer lies in a grounded and highly practical philosophy.

During a recent episode of The Life & Style Podcast, the veteran surgeon spoke about the future of healthcare technology, cutting through the science-fiction hype surrounding AI to reveal a future that is far closer — and far more pragmatic — than many imagine.

Imagine walking into a clinic and, instead of seeing a doctor staring at a computer screen and typing into electronic medical records while you explain your symptoms, the doctor is looking directly at you.

According to Dr Noor Hisham, that shift is already approaching. AI is poised to fundamentally reduce the administrative burden of medical practice, beginning with the traditional consultation itself.

“AI, I think, in all our areas of practice in medicine is going to change the way we practise medicine,” he said, describing a future driven by seamless integration rather than robotic replacement.

“From the way we run our consultation, you don’t need to type on the computer anymore. Just talk to the patient, and then AI will summarise everything.” But the technology goes beyond functioning as digital shorthand.

Dr Noor Hisham said AI could also serve as a cognitive safety net for clinicians by instantly analysing conversations and assisting doctors with investigations and differential diagnoses.

Moving deeper into clinical practice, the former Health DG sees AI becoming an ultra-precise second pair of eyes, particularly in radiology and pathology. In thyroid and neck assessments, where imaging interpretation is critical, AI is steadily evolving from novelty to necessity.

“AI also will play a role in ultrasound as it can be used to diagnose whether this is malignant or not. And, I think there will come a day when even reading the slides, FNAC (Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology) reports... AI can help interpret those reports once the slides are stained.”

By training algorithms on millions of medical images and cellular samples, AI systems can potentially detect microcalcifications or subtle cellular abnormalities that may escape even experienced human eyes, helping to standardise high-level diagnostic accuracy across both urban and rural healthcare settings.

Despite his enthusiasm for these digital advancements, including the inevitable rise of robotic surgery, Dr Noor Hisham balances technological optimism with a strong sense of surgical realism. Surgeons, he noted with a smile, are ultimately practical people.

For him, technology is only valuable if it remains accessible and beneficial to ordinary patients in the real world.

“Robotic surgery is also coming into play in thyroid surgery... but it is still very crude in terms of how much further improvement is needed in the future,” he cautioned.

Rather than blindly chasing every expensive innovation, Dr Noor Hisham stressed that the medical fraternity must evaluate technology against a strict five-point benchmark.

“Always in surgery, we want to know: how can we do things better, faster, cheaper, smarter and, most importantly, safer? High impact, good outcomes at a reasonable cost. Practicality,” he said.

In a world increasingly fascinated with high-tech medical tourism and multi-million-ringgit robotic systems, he reminded healthcare leaders to consider the broader financial consequences for everyday citizens.

“We need to look into all these angles before we commit to using a technique for our patients because someone is paying — whether it is the patient or the insurance company,” he warned.

“If we continue to use robots, for example, it can be done. There’s no doubt. But the cost will escalate, and insurance companies will eventually increase premiums,” he said.

The future of medicine is not about choosing between the empathy of a human doctor and the computational power of an algorithm. It is about finding the right balance between both.

As Dr Noor Hisham eloquently summed up, the true challenge of the modern medical era is not merely inventing the next breakthrough, but asking a far more important question: “How do we strike the balance between technology at a reasonable cost for us to adapt to, while ensuring the safety of the procedure remains the priority?”