Strategies for Governments to Ensure Ethical Use of Large Multi-Modal Models in Healthcare and Promote Health Equity

Large multi-modal models are a new type of AI. Older AI systems usually handle only one kind of data, like text. But LMMs can work with different types like text, images, and videos all at once. This helps them communicate in ways similar to humans and do complex tasks that machines used to find hard.

In healthcare, LMMs have shown use in several important ways:

  • Diagnosis and clinical care: Helping doctors by looking at symptoms, medical pictures, and patient history.
  • Patient-guided symptom investigation: Helping patients understand their symptoms through AI chatbots or tools.
  • Clerical and administrative tasks: Making paperwork, appointment setting, and answering calls easier.
  • Medical and nursing education: Providing training resources that interact with students.
  • Scientific research and drug development: Helping researchers read and summarize lots of medical studies.

Platforms like ChatGPT, Bard, and Bert have become common since 2023 and are examples of LMMs.

Ethical Challenges and Risks of LMM Use in U.S. Healthcare

Even though LMMs are helpful, they come with risks that need attention, especially in the U.S. healthcare system:

  • False or biased outputs: AI might give wrong or partial information. If it misunderstands symptoms or medical data, this could cause wrong treatments.
  • Data bias and inequities: The training data might not represent all groups equally by race, age, disability, or ethnicity. This can make health differences worse if AI works worse for some groups.
  • Automation bias: Health workers might trust AI too much and miss mistakes it makes.
  • Cybersecurity risks: Patient information handled by AI must be kept safe from hacking or misuse.
  • Accessibility and affordability issues: Good AI tools can be costly and need advanced technology that small clinics or poor areas may lack.

To handle these challenges, governments and healthcare groups must plan well and work together.

Government Strategies to Promote Ethical AI Use and Health Equity

The WHO suggests governments have an important role in making rules and support systems for ethical AI in healthcare. These steps are useful for U.S. leaders who want to bring AI into healthcare safely and fairly.

1. Investing in Ethical Infrastructure for AI Development and Deployment

Governments should put money into building systems that make sure AI follows ethical and technical rules. This involves:

  • Promoting AI that uses clear and open algorithms.
  • Making sure AI is trained using data that fairly shows the U.S. population’s variety.
  • Supporting research to check how AI affects different groups, including minorities and people with disabilities.

Funds can be given as grants to AI creators, developing public data banks, or making tools that test AI results.

2. Regulating AI Systems Through Designated Agencies

WHO advises naming a group to approve AI healthcare tools. In the U.S., agencies like the FDA already check health tech. They should also check AI tools for ethics and medical usefulness.

Regulation should include:

  • Checking AI for safety and bias before use.
  • Making developers explain AI limits and the data used.
  • Watching AI after launch with required follow-up audits.
  • Sharing reports publicly about how the AI works and any problems found.

This helps doctors and patients trust AI by holding it responsible.

3. Mandating Multi-Stakeholder Engagement

Good AI rules need input from many groups during design and use. Governments should make AI creators work with:

  • Healthcare providers who know clinical work.
  • Patients who can say what works or not.
  • Ethics and legal experts to protect autonomy and privacy.
  • Community representatives from various social, racial, and economic backgrounds.

This approach lowers chances that AI causes unfair care or bigger health gaps.

4. Addressing Automation Bias Through Education and System Design

Many U.S. health workers now use AI for decisions. But studies show some trust AI too much without checking carefully.

Governments can fund training programs to teach clinicians about AI limits. Rules can ask AI makers to design interfaces that show when AI is unsure and remind users to double-check important choices.

5. Ensuring Transparency and Public Reporting

Being open helps people trust AI. Government groups should require developers to publish results of independent checks. These should show how AI performs across different population groups and note any biases.

Helping doctors and patients understand AI’s abilities and risks is very important in a diverse country like the U.S.

6. Promoting Equity by Supporting AI Access in Underserved Areas

To help close health gaps, governments must make sure AI tools are available not only to big hospitals but also to small clinics and rural places. Ways to do this include:

  • Giving money to cover AI setup costs for safety-net providers.
  • Offering technical support to fit AI into current healthcare systems.
  • Encouraging AI made for common health problems that affect marginalized groups.

Through focused funding and policies, AI can help improve healthcare fairness instead of making it worse.

AI Workflow Automation and Phone Answering Services in Medical Practices

AI can automate front-office work in healthcare, such as answering phones. This helps medical admins and IT managers improve how patients are served and reduce work.

Companies like Simbo AI use AI to answer calls, set up appointments, give patient info, and handle common questions without staff needing to watch all the time. This saves staff time, cuts patient waiting, and lowers office costs.

Based on WHO’s advice, these AI tools should follow ethical rules:

  • Accuracy: AI should respond correctly to patient needs and avoid mistakes that cause confusion or harm.
  • Privacy: Phone systems must keep patient data safe and follow U.S. laws like HIPAA.
  • Inclusivity: Speech recognition and replies should work for various accents, languages, and people with disabilities.
  • Transparency: Patients must know when they speak to AI and have the option to talk to a human if they want.

Following these rules helps medical offices use AI while keeping patient trust and safety.

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The Role of Independent Auditing and Regulatory Oversight in the U.S. Healthcare AI Environment

Following WHO advice, the U.S. can improve AI ethics by requiring outside reviews of healthcare AI tools, including LMMs:

  • Auditors check if AI meets ethical and legal standards.
  • Impact reports include data by age, race, gender, and disability to find gaps.
  • Audit results are shared publicly so providers, patients, and regulators can see them.
  • Regular reviews help catch new risks if patient groups change or data shifts over time.

Regulators can team with third parties to do these checks. This keeps AI safe and effective all through its use.

Collaborative Leadership Across Sectors in the United States

Dr. Jeremy Farrar from WHO says AI can improve health only if all involved understand and manage its risks. Dr. Alain Labrique, also from WHO, stresses that governments must work together on AI rules.

For the U.S., this means federal, state, and local governments need to join with tech companies, health organizations, and patient groups. Working together helps make rules that fit the country’s healthcare and diverse people.

It’s also important to include healthcare workers and IT managers on the ground. Their input ensures AI tools work well in real healthcare settings.

Final Thoughts for U.S. Medical Practice Administrators, Owners, and IT Managers

As AI tools like large multi-modal models become part of U.S. healthcare, leaders in medical offices have an important job to use them carefully. Understanding WHO’s ethics and governance advice—and applying it to local needs—can help avoid problems with bias, wrong information, and loss of patient trust.

Medical leaders should:

  • Demand clear and independent checks of AI products.
  • Involve staff and patients to give feedback before and after AI use.
  • Work with AI vendors to adjust tools for their patients.
  • Encourage ongoing learning about what AI can and cannot do in clinical teams.
  • Support rules that protect patients and make sure all communities can use new AI tools.

By following these steps, healthcare groups can use AI to improve patient care, reduce paperwork, and help create fairer health services in the U.S.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What are large multi-modal models (LMMs)?

LMMs are a type of generative artificial intelligence technology capable of accepting diverse data inputs, like text and images, and generating varied outputs. They can mimic human communication and perform tasks not explicitly programmed.

What potential benefits do LMMs offer in healthcare?

LMMs can enhance healthcare through applications in diagnosis, patient guidance, clerical tasks, medical education, and drug development, thereby improving operational efficiency and patient outcomes.

What are the risks associated with using LMMs in healthcare?

Risks include the production of false or biased information, lack of quality in training data, ‘automation bias’ in decision-making, and cybersecurity vulnerabilities that endanger patient data.

What recommendations does the WHO provide for governments regarding LMMs?

Governments should invest in public infrastructure for ethical AI use, ensure compliance with human rights standards, assign regulatory bodies for assessment, and conduct mandatory audits post-deployment.

How should developers approach the design of LMMs?

Developers should include diverse stakeholders, including medical providers and patients, in the design process to address ethical concerns and ensure that LMMs perform accurate, well-defined tasks.

What is ‘automation bias’ in the context of healthcare and AI?

‘Automation bias’ refers to the tendency of healthcare professionals and patients to overlook errors made by AI systems, potentially leading to misdiagnoses or poor decision-making.

Why is transparency in LMM design and deployment important?

Transparency fosters trust among users and stakeholders, allowing for better oversight, ethical responsibility, and informed decision-making regarding the risks and benefits of LMMs.

What role does independent auditing play in the use of LMMs?

Independent audits help ensure compliance with ethical and human rights standards by assessing LMMs post-release, publishing findings on their impact and effectiveness.

How can LMMs contribute to addressing health inequities?

If properly developed and utilized, LMMs can provide tailored health solutions that improve access to care, particularly for marginalized populations, thus lowering health disparities.

What ethical obligations must be met when deploying LMMs in healthcare?

LMMs must adhere to ethical principles that protect human dignity, autonomy, and privacy, ensuring that AI technologies contribute positively to patient care and public health.