Maintaining patient trust as artificial intelligence’s role in healthcare grows

Patient trust is key to the delivery of healthcare and realisation of artificial intelligence's (AI) benefits in health. Trust in health institutions and the health professionals working within them directly impacts patient engagement with health services and their health outcomes. Patients want to be able to trust the health system and health services to respect, protect and use their data responsibly to minimise any potential harms. Further, when integrating AI within health services, patients want to be able to trust that this is done with good governance, including the correct approvals and processes, to ensure equitable and safe care. Due to the complexity and fast-changing landscape of AI and the varied levels of AI literacy, trust is arguably even more important. Patients need to be able to trust services to use their health information responsibly and integrate AI in care appropriately regardless of whether they fully understand the technology. Through transparency and good AI governance, trust can be built and maintained, but if broken or lost, it will be difficult to repair and will have wider implications. This paper provides recommendations for actions to be taken to build and maintain trust in health institutions within the context of the evolving AI landscape.