Foreword by James Taylor

Foreword by James Taylor Those of us working in analytics and decision management have long regarded medicine as a prime target area. Like many industries, medicine is seeing an explosion in available data as medical records are digitized, medical equipment monitors patients in real time, and medical research is provided in machine-readable formats. If these data can be effectively applied to make better decisions, then lives as well as money can be saved. Applying predictive analytics and decision management to diagnosis, treatment selection, cost management, fraud detection, and more will result in consistent, effective, cost-efficient medical outcomes. These decisions will be based not only on medical research and the skills of medical professionals, but also on the analysis of an extensive and rapidly growing body of data. A book on predictive analytics and decisioning systems in medicine, then, is both timely and necessary. This book provides an introduction to both the healthcare industry and the predictive analytic process. It discusses the ongoing digitization of electronic medical records and how to use these systems, as well as the regulatory and research framework within which medicine operates today. A wide-ranging collection of examples shows the potential for predictive analytics and decisioning, while dozens of tutorial examples walk through real-world uses of predictive analytics in medicine. Critically, throughout the book, the authors keep the reader focused on the need to use data to improve decision-making, not just to make predictions. There is a deep, across-the-board need for predictive analytics and more advanced decisioning systems in health care. This book offers a comprehensive look at the challenges, opportunities, techniques, and technologies. James Taylor CEO Decision Management Solutions Author of Decision Management Systems: A Practical Guide to Using Business Rules and Predictive Analytics (IBM Press, 2011).

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