Balancing AI potential and ethical concerns in nursing
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The Australian College of Nursing (ACN) has released a position statement on Artificial Intelligence (AI), highlighting the transformative potential of AI in nursing while emphasising the need for ethical implementation and strong governance.
ACN Interim CEO, Emeritus Professor Leanne Boyd FACN, stated: “While AI has many potential benefits in healthcare, appropriate regulations and safeguards must be embedded to not compromise patient safety, nursing care delivery, or the profession more broadly.”
The position statement outlines key principles for nurses navigating AI:
- Nurses must always remain the decision maker and continue to use their nursing knowledge and critical thinking in the care they provide to their patients and the broader community.
- Nurses must be cognisant when generative AI is used in nursing. Be cognisant of generative AI in digital tools they use to provide care, including applications with decision support, predictive tools, and automation.
- Nurses must consider the ethical implications of data and algorithmic bias, which may embed gender, race, and other inequalities and inequities due to the inherent limitations of generative AI across various populations.
- Nurses must engage in education on different types of AI and how this can impact the provision of care and understanding of generative AI’s safe and ethical applications.
Professor Boyd added, “AI has the potential to significantly reduce the often-repetitive tasks that nurses perform, as well as assist in solving both our current and future workforce challenges.”
ACN advocates for integrating AI education into nursing curricula at all levels and emphasises the importance of nursing informaticians in AI application. The college also supports the recommendations outlined in the National Policy Roadmap for Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare.
“ACN recognises the benefits AI represents and the potential to improve health outcomes for individual patients, their communities, and Australia as a whole,” Professor Boyd concluded.
Ritchelle is a Content Producer for Healthcare Channel, Australia’s premier resource of information for healthcare.
