Abstract

Applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare are currently much tested and discussed, generating a number of hopes and expectations as well as challenges. The article maps the ethical and social issues associated with the employment of artificial intelligence in medicine and healthcare. To begin with, an overview is given of some of the existing applications and areas of healthcare are outlined which could benefit from applications of AI, including clinical medicine, as well as research, public health and health care administration. The article discusses some of the challenges associated with the social and ethical aspects of healthcare-applied AI. The topics discussed include data protection and privacy, the so-called black box problem, issues of responsibility and bias in AI, as well as the machine morality problem and the future of doctor-patient relationship.