Health Data and AI: Responsible Innovation, Ethics and Regulatory Strategies

This three-day advanced course offers a critical overview and understanding of the ethical and regulatory challenges triggered by the use of big data and artificial intelligence (AI) in the health sector. Digital health technologies and AI have developed rapidly in recent years. The emergence of large language models and AI chatbots such as ChatGPT not only advanced their introduction in the health sector but also accentuated ethical concerns and regulatory uncertainties. The increasing potential for these technologies to have a significant impact on individuals and societies requires continuous engagement with the ethical and governance challenges they pose.

Through a combination of lectures, case studies and breakout sessions, the course will examine some of the fundamental disruptions brought about by the use of AI and big data in health. It will examine key multi-dimensional ethical and legal questions covering issues such as privacy, bias, transparency and explainability, equity and non-discrimination. It will review current regulatory trends and governance responses as well as emerging practical guidance, approaches and mechanisms aimed at supporting researchers and policy makers.

During the course, participants will have the opportunity to learn from and interact with thought leaders, practitioners, and scholars and benefit from the international and dynamic academic environment of the ETH, and the exceptional density of public and private actors engaged in the field.

The course, which is in its third edition, has attracted international, multidisciplinary, and cross-sector participants. It is open to doctoral students and mid- level professionals active in academic research, the private sector and policymaking from various disciplines including computer science, political science, public policy, philosophy, population health, medicine, biomedical sciences, law, and engineering.

We encourage applications from AI developers, as well as researchers employed in the pharmaceutical, health insurance, and digital health industries, with a desire to expand their understanding of data ethics and AI’s impact on society.

The course will provide participants with the latest insights in current developments and equip them with the necessary competences, skills, tools, critical understanding and practical approaches to effectively address ethics and governance issues through their respective roles. By attending the “Health DARES” course, participants will be able to:

• Understand the health data ecosystems, the data lifecycle and value chain, and the stakeholders involved.
  
• Identify and critically examine key ethical challenges related to the use of health data and AI through real- life examples and case studies.
  
• Evaluate current strategies and approaches to address some of the main ethical challenges, their strengths as well as limitations.
  
• Analyse regulatory trends and the frameworks governing data uses, AI and the health applications resulting from them.