MzansiMed: Advancing Healthcare Equity Through Language Access

Mariam Parker of the University of the Western Cape in South Africa will develop an AI-based application, MzansiMed, for real-time translation of South African languages to increase healthcare access and improve health outcomes. To train an AI model, they will build a database of dialogues encompassing a variety of healthcare scenarios, initially collecting data in at least two widely spoken languages, including isiXhosa and Zulu. This will be in collaboration with linguists and participant communities to ensure incorporation of linguistic diversity, cultural nuances, and colloquial expressions. They will take a user-centric design approach to create an intuitive user interface for interactions by speech or text, integrating ChatGPT-4 and including visual aids. They will iteratively refine the app, including testing it with patients and healthcare providers, to ensure the translation is accurate, effective, and culturally sensitive.