Health Ethics & Policy Lab

📣 Applications now open! The third three-day course – Health Data and AI: Responsible Innovation, Ethics and Regulatory Strategies – will take place January 27-29, 2025 at @ETH_en Zurich. For further details and the application form – lnkd.in/eRJhYWf2 @ETH_AI_Center

Parallels are identified between rehabilitation and nursing sciences, such as a person-centered, holistic perspective. The concept of 'health potential' is discussed in light of discerning prognosis and treatment plans. Congratulations to the authors on this fascinating work!👏

While physicians and rehabilitation professionals often collaborate on the same team, their focus and conceptualizations differ. The authors discuss emphasis in diagnosis, noting that the object of a physical therapist's diagnosis is often not directly a disease.

New #OpenAccess paper by lab member Mattia Andreoletti and co-authors @chiffidaniele and Davide Dalla Rosa offers a multidisciplinary look at the epistemology of clinical reasoning in rehabilitation and physical medicine 💡 link.springer.com/article/10.100…

At the @EthicsPolicyLab in October we look forward to welcoming @chiffidaniele as the next speaker in our ETHix lecture series. Prof Chiffi will discuss ethical considerations around #AI health apps, such as trust and reliability. Registration ➡️ eirini.petrou@hest.ethz.ch

A reminder, all are welcome to join us on Zoom tomorrow afternoon - Wednesday 18. September at 14:00 CET - as @simonniemeyer and @francesco_veri explore questions around the ethics of human genome editing 🧬 Registration via email: eirini.petrou@hest.ethz.ch

Terminology used this area is diverse, and clarity regarding purpose and capacity of tools is important. Questions remain about how robust these tools are for oversight of AI systems, and when more tailored approaches are called for. Congratulations to the authors! 👏

Efforts by governments, public institutions and private companies have increasingly offered practical guidance for ethical AI. This paper examines available tools that promote ethical application of AI, for health and medicine and in general, including barriers to adoption.

📣 New paper out this month! There have been growing calls for #AI governance to move beyond abstract ethical principles, to more practical/actionable guidance. Authors Sara Kijewski, @EffyVayena and Elettra Ronchi review current approaches ➡️ link.springer.com/article/10.100…

The challenging balance of innovation and regulation will require attention, as Europe seeks to remain competitive in the digital health market. This paper seeks to identify possible downsides of the AI Act for medical device regulation and use. Congratulations to the authors!

Requirements such as traceability, AI quality managements systems, human oversight, and AI technical documentation are laid out in the AI Act 🔎 The aim is to see patient safety and AI system efficacy improved, while innovation is encouraged and public trust is earned.

What is the impact of the EU's AI Act on AI- and ML-enabled medical devices? New paper out in @npjDigitalMed! 📣 @EffyVayena together with co-authors @TiMinCeBIL and @mateo_aboy explore the implications of the AI Act for medical devices. Open access: nature.com/articles/s4174…

What is the role of technical universities in democratic societies today? 👩‍🎓 Professor @EffyVayena joined @SJasanoff @smpfotenhauer and Professor Margarita Boenig-Liptsin last week at @ETH_en, to discuss this question. Read more here ➡️ tinyurl.com/2xb6p6fv

Join us this fall as we explore a range of current ethics topics, from genomics and digital health to AI 🧬🔎🙋‍♀️ Sessions in Zurich + over Zoom - register via email eirini.petrou@hest.ethz.ch @ETH_en @simonniemeyer @francesco_veri @chiffidaniele @MMccradden @ArvidGollwitzer

📣 We are delighted to invite you to the next event in our ETHix Series, on Wednesday 18. September at 14:00 on Zoom. @simonniemeyer from the @UniCanberra and @francesco_veri from @UZH_en will discuss 'Deliberation and Human Genome Editing: The Challenge of Issue Complexity'

Congrats to the authors on this insightful contribution! 🎊

The authors first consider the role of evidence of mechanisms within drug regulation, with a focus on the @US_FDA Accelerated Approval pathway for new drug candidates. The paper goes on to examine the reliability of evidential pluralism within the context of drug regulation.

📣 Paper out this week in the journal Synthese, by Mattia Andreoletti and co-author @SaulPerGon_ discussing evidential pluralism in drug regulation in the context of real-world applications 💊 Read the full article here: link.springer.com/article/10.100…

Questions were raised about the risk that digital biomarkers may worsen health disparities and inequities already inherent in the healthcare system. Congratulations to the authors on this fascinating contribution!

Literature search revealed a concentration of research in the area of psychiatry/mental health (fields where traditional biomarkers are harder to obtain.) Privacy and data security emerged as important themes, along with informed consent, and use of algorithms for data analysis.

💡Ethics of digital biomarkers New paper out this week by Mattia Andreoletti, Luana Haller, @a_blasimme and @EffyVayena, considering complexities of incorporating this innovative technology in clinical and research settings ⚕️ Read the paper here ➡️ doi.org/10.1371/journa…