Artificial intelligence in healthcare: the duty to inform patients

Overview

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly used in healthcare, ranging from diagnostic and therapeutic applications to administrative support. Its implementation raises not only medical and ethical, but also legal challenges.

This review article focuses on the healthcare provider’s duty to inform patients about the use of AI systems in clinical practice. It examines the ethical dimension of this duty, particularly the principles of autonomy and the patient’s right to information and explanation and analyzes the legal framework arising from the EU Artificial Intelligence Act, GDPR, the Council of Europe Framework Convention, and the Czech Health Services Act.

The authors conclude that the patient’s right to be informed about the use of AI and to understand its role in clinical decision-making can be derived from the concept of informed consent, even though it is not yet explicitly enshrined in law. The article also offers recommendations for clinical practice regarding the scope and depth of information disclosure.

Keywords:

informed consent – artificial intelligence – healthcare – ethics – patient autonomy – right to explanation