Episode 27: The Ethics of Medical AI, with Professor Erwin Loh, Chief Medical Officer for St Vincent's Health, Australia
The Medical AI PodcastShow Notes
Are there ethical issues with medical AI that are unique? Any major technological development can have huge benefits and huge risks. And medical AI is no different. The benefits of medical AI are talked about endlessly. Much less so the risks. But what are those dangers?
The Declaration of Helsinki is widely regarded as the cornerstone of human research ethics. This a set of ethical principles regarding human experimentation developed originally in 1964 for the medical community by the World Medical Association. The fundamental principle is respect for the individual, his or her right to self-determination and the right to make informed decisions regarding participation in research. But what is the support adn the Declaration of Helsinki? Is it for purpose? Or is it actually highly questionable in some circumstances?
Joining Felix is Professor Erwin Loh, Chief Medical Officer for St Vincent's Health, Australia’s largest not-for-profit health care provider, Professor at Monash, Melbourne and Macquarie Universities and renowned author on medical AI.
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Scary fact: fertility rates across the West have plummeted to alarmingly low levels, marking a significant demographic shift. Most Western countries now have a Total Fertility Rate (TFR) well below the 'replacement level' of approximately 2.1 children per woman—the rate needed to maintain a population size without migration. For instance, the European Union's TFR hit a historical low of just 1.38 live births per woman in 2023, with countries like Spain and Italy seeing rates as low as 1.12 and 1.2 respectively. This downward trend is a major societal change, driven by the rising cost of living, delayed parenthood, and economic uncertainty. The long-term impact of these plummeting rates presents profound challenges for Western societies. The most immediate concern is a rapidly ageing population and a resulting shrinking workforce. This demographic imbalance places immense strain on public finances, as fewer working-age people are left to fund the increasing costs of pensions and healthcare for a growing number of elderly citizens. A smaller, older population can also lead to slower economic growth due to labour shortages, forcing Western nations to fundamentally reorganise their societies and policy approaches.