Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 10 April 2025
424. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Health if she will specify the specific policy areas where the Department is examining future use of AI; if she will identify what entities the Department is working with, public or private, in relation to this examination; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18414/25]
View answerThe Department of Health and the HSE have recently commenced the development of a strategy for AI in Health, as committed to in the Programme for Government, and expect to bring this to Government later this year. The strategy will promote the use of AI in health and support the responsible and safe use of AI in a number of areas, such as Clinical and Patient Care, Operations and Administration, Research and Development, Patient Engagement and Experience and Public Health.
This will lead to the development of an implementation roadmap that will focus on the application of AI at the operational and service delivery levels, including support for AI projects that are currently being considered.
The work of the Irish Platform for Patients' Organisations, and recommendations of the citizens’ jury on the use of AI in healthcare, will help inform the development of the AI in Health strategy. Indeed, the Department of Health and HSE are including IPPOSI as one of wide range of stakeholder groups, to help inform the development of the strategy.
Separately, I have tasked the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to develop guidance to promote the responsible and safe use of AI in health and social care. This too will include engagement with key stakeholder groups and is expected to be shared with the public later this year. This will serve to inform the safe and responsible use of AI in healthcare, aligning with the guardrails established by the National AI Strategy and the EU Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act: https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/regulatory-framework-ai.
The EU AI act establishes a harmonised regulatory framework for AI systems developed or deployed in the EU. It is designed to provide a high level of protection to people’s health, safety, and fundamental rights and to simultaneously promote the adoption of human-centric, trustworthy AI. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) is leading on national implementation of the Act. DETE held a public consultation, open to all stakeholders, including enterprise, civil society, and public bodies, which closed on 16 July 2024.
Government will bring forward legislation in the coming months to provide for the full implementation and enforcement of the AI Act at national level.
