Hierarchy of Ethical Principles for the use of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine and Healthcare

Abstract

The article researches the problem of ethical support of the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine and healthcare, which is topical for modern sci­ence. Despite a significant number of foreign and domestic publications devoted to the topic of AI, the conceptual justification of the ethics of AI application in medicine and healthcare remains poorly developed. Relying on international recommendations and articles, as well as on their own experience of research activities, work in research ethics committees, the results of a pilot survey of health care workers, etc., the authors define and analyze the basic ethical principles of using AI in medicine and health care. The proposed principles are considered in the context of their practical application to protect human and natural rights and interests, which includes preservation of patient confidentiality, prevention of discrimination, protection from AI errors, respect for in­formed consent, as well as compliance with the norms of “open science”, mutual trust of developers and users, etc. The proposed principles are analyzed in the context of their practical application. The application of the proposed principles will orient scientists, AI developers, ethical committees conducting expert review of research, society as a whole to the priorities of humanization of healthcare, respect for human beings and nature, as well as to educate society, create a regulatory framework, ethical recommen­dations and codes of ethics for the use of AI in medicine and healthcare.