IBM Watson Health, Cota Healthcare, and Hackensack Meridian Health have teamed up to help clinicians make evidence- and outcomes-based clinical decisions for cancer patients.

The project aims to use Cota's precision-medicine database into IBM's Watson for Oncology to offer oncologists with artificial intelligence-enabled evidence-based recommendations. It will involve at least 10 oncologists and around 500 patients from Hackensack Meridian Health, with the pilot program to run until the end of October.

IBM's Watson for Oncology will be used by clinicians to identify and rank treatment options; give links for supporting evidence; and offer clinicians with unparalleled insights as they consider the right course for the patient. Cota's software, which includes cancer cohort analysis of similar patients, will add meaning to clinical notes and reports and also help in tailoring the customized care plan for the patients.  

In the second phase of the pilot, evidence-based treatment recommendations and care paths in Watson will cover insights on bundled payment assignments. One of the goals is to provide oncologists resources to allow them to provide a value-based care, with lower costs and improved outcomes.

The collaboration between IBM's Watson for Oncology and Cota real-world evidence aims to offer treatment recommendations together with insights on real-world outcomes to the healthcare providers.

"The combined insights possible from Cota and Watson for Oncology... presents real world outcomes to decision makers when they need to make decisions. Providers like Hackensack Meridian Health will now have the necessary tools to achieve the highest possible performance under all types of value-based models and cutting edge cancer care," Andrew Pecora, Cota's CEO, said.

Following the pilot, Hackensack Meridian Health is expecting to roll out the solution on its system, extending its access not only to oncologists but also to other health networks.