Voted the #1 Most Influential Physician Executive in the United States in a poll conducted by Modern Healthcare, Dr. Topol is also one of GQ’s 12 “Rock Stars of Science”. Dr. Topol is one of the leading innovators in medicine today, specializing in the use of artificial intelligence, “deep” data, and smart technology in the practice of individualized medicine. Also called precision medicine, individualized medicine tailors diagnosis, prevention, and treatment to the full biological and social profile of the individual, rather than the “average” human of traditional medical science. Dr. Eric Topol is the Founder and Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute (SRTI). He also is Executive Vice President of Scripps Research and Professor of Molecular Medicine.
Dr. Topol’s recent focus has been on deep learning and deep medicine. Deep-learning uses artificial intelligence to analyze huge quantities of data to inform “deep medicine.” These algorithms are becoming as good at diagnosis as doctors in a field; they don’t get tired, don’t have bad days, are really cheap and fast. To advance this work, Dr. Topol is a leader of the All of Us Precision Medicine Initiative begun by President Obama, the most ambitious US medical research project in history. The Precision Medicine Initiative will track the medical profiles of one million diverse Americans. The grant to Dr. Topol and Scripps Research is one of the largest grants in NIH history, and will use all the tools — genomics, sensors, smartphones — that Topol’s work has spearheaded and enhance the capabilities of individualized medicine.
Before coming to Scripps to create its individualized medicine initiatives, Dr. Topol led the Cleveland Clinic to become the #1 center for heart care in the country and founded its medical school. One of the top 10 most cited researchers in medicine, Eric has published 1200 peer-reviewed articles and over 30 medical textbooks. His research earned him the title “Doctor of the Decade” from the Institute for Scientific Information. He is also the author of three bestsellers on the future of healthcare, The Creative Destruction of Medicine and The Patient Will See You Now, and most recently How Artificial Intelligence Can Make Healthcare Human Again.
AI presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for clinicians to be given back the gift of time to provide patients with personal care and recover the human connection and bond between patients and doctors that existed long ago. Bringing AI into the medical workflow can help healthcare institutions provide “better, faster, cheaper” care by augmenting what clinicians can do. Deep learning will be the opportunity to put care back into healthcare and recover the “soul of medicine”.