Ontario Hospitals Test AI Calculator to Spot Delirium Risk
The trial will use a calculator that flagged a patient as more than 50% likely to develop delirium and could help target prevention bundles.
- On Aug 4, 13 Ontario hospitals began a randomized clinical trial using an artificial intelligence calculator to identify patients at risk of delirium and prioritize preventive care across diverse clinical settings.
- Delirium, described as 'acute brain failure,' affects about 500,000 Canadians annually but remains frequently unrecognized, with recognition rates as low as 16 per cent. It is often misdiagnosed as dementia or depression.
- Amol Verma, physician scientist at St. Michael's Hospital, inputs patient data including age and lab results into the calculator, which generates a 'high risk' alert when delirium probability exceeds 50 per cent.
- Jacques Lee, who researched delirium for 20 years, said the tool has potential but noted systemic issues like overcrowding and staff shortages must be fixed for outcomes to improve. "We all know what we're supposed to do. What actually happens on the wards – that's where the rub is," Lee said.
- The research network GEMINI, which includes about 40 hospitals in Ontario, recently received $100 million from the federal government's artificial intelligence strategy to scale the delirium calculator project nationally.
31 Articles
31 Articles
AI tool aims to help Ontario hospitals identify patients at risk of delirium
Bruce MacLeod never thought he would forget his own birthday. But a couple days after a heart valve replacement in February 2025, he did. "It was strange. It was just out of reach, like, if I reached a little further, I could have pulled those memories back, but I was unsuccessful at the time," MacLeod, 65, said. His partner, Harry Ennis, recalls coming into the hospital room one day to find MacLeod had ripped off his heart monitor, and his belo…
The Toronto Star
Delirium is often missed by health providers. Could an AI risk predictor help?
TORONTO - Bruce MacLeod never thought he would forget his own birthday.
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Guest CommentaryRobert Pearl When it comes to medicine, Washington, D.C., is not anti-AI. In a string of recent legislative announcements, the White House has made AI innovation a national priority. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is exploring strategies to accelerate AI in clinical care. And the FDA has already authorized more than […] The post Commentary: Federal action could unlock AI’s power for millions of patients ap…
Delirium is often missed by health providers. Could an AI risk predictor help? – 105.9 The Region
TORONTO — Bruce MacLeod never thought he would forget his own birthday. But a couple days after a heart valve replacement in February 2025, he did. “It was strange. It was just out of reach, like, if I reached a little further, I could have pulled those memories back, but I was unsuccessful at the time,” MacLeod, 65, said. His partner, Harry Ennis, recalls coming into the hospital room one day to find MacLeod had ripped off his heart monitor, an…
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BIOENGINEER.ORGManaging Brain Function May Help Prevent Delirium in Critically Ill Older
Delirium, a sudden disturbance in attention, awareness and thinking, remains one of the most dangerous complications faced by older adults in intensive care. It can appear within hours, fluctuate throughout the day and transform a familiar hospital environment into a landscape of confusion and fear. A new study by Ren, Zhong, Mo and colleagues, published in BMC Geriatrics, draws attention to a central question in critical-care medicine: whether …
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