On Tuesday, the Vatican released a new document, entitled Note on the Relationship Between Artificial Intelligence and Human Intelligence, in which it offered ethical guidelines for the use of AI in numerous sectors, including the economy, education, misinformation. privacy, healthcare, and warfare, with the intention of having it enhance, rather than replace, human skills.
As the Note points out that, AI can be trained on human creativity and then generate new works “with a level of speed and skill that often rivals or surpasses what humans can do,” including creating text or images that can’t be distinguished from those made by humans, thus raising “critical concerns about AI’s potential role in the growing crisis of truth in the public forum.”
In addition, AI is designed to learn and make certain choices autonomously, which raises fundamental questions about ethical responsibility and human safety.
“Taking all this into account, there is broad consensus that AI marks a new and significant phase in humanity’s engagement with technology,” the Vatican wrote.
“Its impact is felt globally and in a wide range of areas, including interpersonal relationships, education, work, art, healthcare, law, warfare, and international relations. As AI advances rapidly toward even greater achievements, it is critically important to consider its anthropological and ethical implications. This involves not only mitigating risks and preventing harm but also ensuring that its applications are used to promote human progress and the common good.”
AI in healthcare
In the section regarding artificial intelligence and its use in the healthcare sector, the Vatican cites the potential of AI to enhance medical care, while also noting that it is important that AI is used to “enhance but not to replace the relationship between patients and healthcare providers.”
“…AI seems to hold immense potential in a variety of applications in the medical field, such as assisting the diagnostic work of healthcare providers, facilitating relationships between patients and medical staff, offering new treatments, and expanding access to quality care also for those who are isolated or marginalized,” it says in the Note, which espoused hope that the technology could enhance the “compassionate and loving closeness” that healthcare providers provide.
At the same time, it expressed worry that AI will actually make people worse by making them lonelier, which “would not align with respect for the dignity of the human person and solidarity with the suffering.”
“Instead of encouraging solidarity with the sick and suffering, such applications of AI would risk worsening the loneliness that often accompanies illness, especially in the context of a culture where ‘persons are no longer seen as a paramount value to be cared for and respected,'” it says.
As such, the Vatican calls on medical professionals to use their own skill and intelligence to make choices for people who are in their care, and not to delegate them to AI.
The Note also calls out the use of artificial intelligence to determine who should receive treatment based predominantly on economic measures or metrics of efficiency; for example, UnitedHealthcare has been accused of using an algorithm to determine which claims they will deny. This, the Vatican says, “must be rejected.”
Finally, the Note noted worries over AI bias and how certain healthcare trends may leave out more marginalized populations.
“The integration of AI into healthcare also poses the risk of amplifying other existing disparities in access to medical care. As healthcare becomes increasingly oriented toward prevention and lifestyle-based approaches, AI-driven solutions may inadvertently favor more affluent populations who already enjoy better access to medical resources and quality nutrition,” it says in the Note.
“This trend risks reinforcing a ‘medicine for the rich’ model, where those with financial means benefit from advanced preventative tools and personalized health information while others struggle to access even basic services. To prevent such inequities, equitable frameworks are needed to ensure that the use of AI in healthcare does not worsen existing healthcare inequalities but rather serves the common good.”
(Image source: britannica.com)