Atlantic Fellow for Health Equity U.S. + Global, Qusai Hammouri, and their team have won the inaugural Kevin Xu Innovation Challenge at this year’s Rhodes Technology and Society Forum with their groundbreaking project, MDus.ai. This innovative platform uses animated videos powered by artificial intelligence to transform complex medical information into accessible resources that are easy to understand, empowering patients worldwide to make more informed decisions about their health.
MDus.ai creates personalized content, including videos and interactive materials, tailored to individual conditions, cultural backgrounds and learning preferences. By bridging critical knowledge gaps, this project exemplifies how technology and medical expertise can come together to improve health equity on a global scale.
Qusai said: “MDus.ai directly addresses health care inequities by providing easily accessible and personalized medical information to those historically marginalized in the health care system. By focusing on culturally relevant content, we ensure that patients from underserved communities can make informed health decisions.”
Qusai, a pediatric spine surgeon at NYU Langone Health, said the inspiration for MDus.ai stemmed from their own personal journey as a gay immigrant working in health care. Growing up in Jordan and later practicing medicine in the United States, they witnessed firsthand the barriers faced by underserved communities trying to access health care information. Their experiences in Staten Island, where they were the only pediatric orthopedic doctor, highlighted the urgent need for accessible and culturally sensitive health care education. This realization, combined with their work with diverse patient populations through initiatives like Pride Ortho and Operation Smile, fueled the idea for MDus.ai.
The Rhodes Trust and Equitech Futures announced the prizewinner on Nov. 2 at the Rhodes Trust Tech and Society Forum at Rhodes House, Oxford. The inaugural Kevin Xu Innovation Challenge posed a crucial question to innovators worldwide: How can we create a society where AI isn't a threat to livelihoods, but rather a tool that empowers people to build more meaningful lives to create a more equitable future for all?
“The future of MDus.ai is filled with potential for transformative impact in health care delivery. I envision our platform expanding globally, reaching even more underserved populations and enhancing health literacy on a larger scale,” said Qusai. “Ultimately, our goal is to revolutionize health care education, making it universally accessible and culturally inclusive, thereby contributing significantly to global health equity and improving health outcomes for all communities.”
A native of Jordan, Qusai immigrated to the U.S. in 2004 to pursue their education and training at Yale, NYU and Columbia. They were a part of the diversity task forces of SRS and POSNA and they are a diversity and health equity mentor.
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