Ernest gave a talk at the 2022 IST-Africa (IST-Africa 2022) conference that was held virtually between May 16–20, 2022.
The talk was based on a peer-reviewed publication titled "Enterprise Medical Imaging: Challenges and Opportunities", based on a preliminary analysis of the Radiological landscape in Zambia conducted as part of a series of pilot studies to be conducted using a Seed Money grant awarded to us by The Directorate of Research and Graduate Studies (DRGS) at The University of Zambia (UNZA).
The Republic of Zambia, like many other developing countries world-over, is faced with a critical shortage of trained radiologists—medical experts specialised in the interpretation and use of medical imaging for radiological diagnosis and treatment of health conditions. Coupled with the shortage of medical imaging experts is the limited use of modern medical imaging practices that facilitate efficient and effective interpretation of medical images. A potential solution for addressing these challenges is the implementation of Enterprise Imaging (EI)— techniques and workflows for acquiring, indexing, managing, storing and analysing clinical images, in order to enhance electronic health records. Implementation of a successful EI strategy has the potential to facilitate efficient and effective medical image interpretation, subsequently improving clinical care. The results from this study, through the analysis of the 2019 radiology annual returns report, indicates that General Radiography and Ultrasound were the most performed modalities. In addition, the current workflows and practices at UTH-Adult hospital Radiology department are monotonous with multiple interrelated challenges. Furthermore, there are unique EI implementation challenges, specific to Zambia, in addition to challenges highlighted in literature.
Associated Publications
Chibuta, Peter, Lighton Phiri, Ernest Obbie Zulu, and Malaizyo Muzumala. 2026. “Global South Health Practitioners’ Awareness and Perceptions of Integrating Artificial Intelligence in Radiological Workflows: A Quantitative Nationwide Study in Health Facilities in Zambia”. In Medical Image Computing in Resource Constrained Settings, 175-84. Cham, Switzerland: Springer Nature Switzerland. doi:10.1007/978-3-032-13654-1_18. |
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Muzumala, Malaizyo, Ernest Obbie Zulu, Peter Chibuta, Mayumbo Nyirenda, and Lighton Phiri. 2025. “Evaluating Perceived Workload, Usability and Usefulness of Artificial Intelligence Systems in Low-Resource Settings: Semi-Automated Classification and Detection of Community Acquired Pneumonia”. In Applications of Medical Artificial Intelligence (AMAI 2024), 116-26. Marrakech, Morocco: Springer Nature Switzerland. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-82007-6_12. |
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Phiri, Lighton, Zola Mahlaza, Ernest Obbie Zulu, Rabson Mbewe, Peter Chibuta, Malaizyo Muzumala, Andrew Shawa, and Elijah Chileshe. 2024. “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence for Efficient and Effective Radiological Workflows: A Multi-Pronged Approach for Semi-Automated Radiological Workflows”. presented at the 12th Data Science Africa Workshop (DSA 2024), Nyeri, Kenya. |
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Shawa, Andrew, Elijah Chileshe, Brighton Mwaba, John Mwanza, Wilkins Sikazwe, Ernest Obbie Zulu, and Lighton Phiri. 2024. “User Centred Design and Implementation of Useful Picture Archiving and Communication Systems for Effective Radiological Workflows in Public Health Facilities in Zambia”. presented at the 45th South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists Conference (SAICSIT 2024), Gqeberha, South Africa. |
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Shawa, Andrew, Elijah Chileshe, Brighton Mwaba, John Mwanza, Wilkins Sikazwe, Ernest Obbie Zulu, and Lighton Phiri. 2024. “User Centred Design and Implementation of Useful Picture Archiving and Communication Systems for Effective Radiological Workflows in Public Health Facilities in Zambia”. In Annual Conference of South African Institute of Computer Scientists and Information Technologists (SAICSIT 2024), 175-89. Gqeberha, South Africa: Springer Nature Switzerland. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-64881-6_10. |
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