Researchers from the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI) have collaborated on a groundbreaking paper in the renowned journal The BMJ. The paper “FUTURE-AI: international consensus guideline for trustworthy and deployable artificial intelligence in healthcare” explains the FUTURE-AI framework, a guideline for the development and deployment of trustworthy AI tools in healthcare.
For the successful introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, it is crucial that patients, medical staff and healthcare organizations build well-founded trust in the technology. However, there is currently a lack of clear, internationally recognized guidelines for the development, evaluation and implementation of AI-based medical technologies.
To address this gap, the FUTURE-AI consortium was founded in 2021. It consists of 117 interdisciplinary experts from 50 countries on six continents - including specialists from the fields of AI, clinical research, biomedical ethics and the social sciences. Over a period of two years, the consortium developed the FUTURE-AI guideline. The experts defined 30 best practices that take technical, clinical, ethical and legal aspects into account. The resulting concept covers the entire life cycle of AI in healthcare.
In addition to the latest findings from several research projects on AI in medicine, the Fraunhofer HHI researchers contributed their expertise from various AI standardization bodies, including the “AI for Health” initiative of the United Nations (International Telecommunication Union, World Health Organization, World Intellectual Property Organization), which is developing the basis for international standards for the use of AI in healthcare.
"In healthcare, we need international standards and a rigorous evaluation of the use of AI in complex clinical settings. Users must be able to trust the technologies that support their diagnostic processes and treatments. Medical AI systems should therefore not only be technically and clinically safe and effective, but also ethical and transparent," explains Eva Weicken, Chief Medical Officer at Fraunhofer HHI.
Fraunhofer HHI is currently working on several projects and initiatives in the field of “Trustworthy AI” and AI in healthcare. For example, the institute is developing a Europe-wide test infrastructure for AI and robotics in healthcare in the TEF-Health project. Fraunhofer HHI is also a member of other national and international initiatives for the testing and certification of AI technologies, for example with the TÜV Association and the German Federal Office for Information Security.
Source: Fraunhofer HHI