As we continue our work on our project, we’re excited to share the latest developments on SimUNet, which we will use in field experiments to test our AI models with OPO professionals.
During this year, we’ve focused on understanding the OPO context and identified core features needed for SimUNet to serve as an effective research tool. SimUNet’s original interface was designed around transplant center clinicians evaluating and responding to kidney offers. The upcoming updates will introduce a more flexible architecture that will allow researchers to create more customized study designs and the ability to conduct experiments in an OPO context.
We’ve already made significant progress in updating the contemporary design of SimUNet and adding important administrative tools to help manage the studies. Currently, the UNOS Software Engineering team is updating SimUNet to include more robust researcher features and adding the OPO study designs.
Our Next Steps:
Our immediate focus is on developing detailed OPO scenarios. These scenarios will simulate the decision-making points of OPO staff, allowing us to see how the tools we are building can assist them in their critical roles. We are also looking to identify key events when the AI tools have the most potential to help our introduce efficiencies.
We plan to conduct a focus group and testing with OPO professionals to refine the tool. Once the prototype of SimUNet OPO is ready, we will continue to refine and test the tool during the first half of 2025.
Why This Matters:
The enhancements we’re making to SimUNet will allow us to empirically demonstrate that what we are developing provides OPO staff with more intuitive tools to manage organ donation processes. By incorporating our AI models, we aim to streamline their workflows, improving both efficiency and outcomes in organ transplantation. Our goal is to start the field experiments in September 2025.
We are excited about the potential impact of this project and look forward to sharing more updates as we move closer to our study start date in September 2025.
Stay tuned for further developments as we continue to refine and test the improvements to SimUNet.
Contributor: Brendon Cummiskey (UNOS)