Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41000336›Full record

ReviewFrontiers in digital health2025

Ethics of AI in healthcare: a scoping review demonstrating applicability of a foundational framework.

Aaron J Gorelik, Mengyuan Li, Jessica Hahne, Junyi Wang, Yongqi Ren, Lei Yang, Xin Zhang, Xing Liu, Xiaomin Wang, Ryan Bogdan and 1 more

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Frontiers in digital health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
14citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

14 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Aaron J Gorelik *Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States.
Mengyuan Li *School of Humanities, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Jessica Hahne *Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States.
Junyi WangSchool of Humanities, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Yongqi RenSchool of Humanities, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Lei YangSchool of Humanities, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Xin ZhangXiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Xing LiuXiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Xiaomin WangCenter for Clinical Pharmacology, Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
Ryan BogdanDepartment of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States.
Brian D CarpenterDepartment of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly being adopted across many industries including healthcare. This has brought forth the development of many new independent ethical frameworks for responsible use of AI within institutions and companies. Risks associated with the application of AI in healthcare have high stakes for patients. Further, the existence of multiple frameworks may exacerbate these risks due to potential differences in interpretation and prioritization in said frameworks. Resolving these risks requires an ethical framework that is both broadly adopted in healthcare settings and applicable to AI. Here, we examined whether a framework consisting of the 4 well-established principles of biomedical ethics (i.e., Beneficence, Non-Maleficence, Respect for Autonomy, and Justice) can serve as a foundation for an ethical framework for AI in healthcare. To this end, we conducted a scoping review of 227 peer-reviewed papers using semi-inductive thematic analyses to categorize patient-related ethical issues in healthcare AI under these 4 principles of biomedical ethics. We found that these principles, which are already widely adopted in healthcare settings, were comprehensively and internationally applicable to ethical considerations concerning use of AI in healthcare. The existing four principles of biomedical ethics can provide a foundational ethical framework for applying AI in healthcare, grounding other Responsible AI frameworks, and can act as a basis for AI governance and policy in healthcare.

Indexed as

Artificial IntelligenceAutonomyBeneficenceethicshealthcareJusticeNon-MaleficenceResponsible AI

Identifiers

PMID41000336
PMCPMC12459206

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.