Legal And Ethical Implications Of Artificial Intelligence In Clinical Decision-Making
- IJLLR Journal
- Mar 13
- 1 min read
Rohan Abraham Daniel, School of Law, Christ (Deemed to be University)
ABSTRACT
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly changing the landscape of modern healthcare, most profoundly in the area of clinical decision-making. From diagnostic imaging using deep learning technology to natural language processing tools that query electronic health records, AI systems are now actively participating in the field of healthcare, including the detection of diseases, recommendation of treatment pathways and prediction of patient outcomes. This technology has promised enhanced precision, reduced clinician burden, greater accessibility, and improved level of health outcomes. Yet their integration into the clinic generates equally substantial legal and ethical tensions. Some of the main concerns and questions raised are of liability allocation when AI contributes to a misdiagnosis, the adequacy of the informed consent where algorithmic logic is used, the systemic injustice embedded in biased training data, and the jurisdictional fragmentation of regulatory oversight remain unresolved in law and contested in ethics. This article undertakes a comprehensive examination of these tensions and analyses the existing legal frameworks across key jurisdictions including the United States, the European Union (EU), and India and evaluates their adequacy in addressing AI specific challenges such as adaptive learning and black box decision making architecture and looks at the foundational bioethical principles in the context of algorithmic medicine. The main argument is that AI has to play an auxiliary role rather than being an alternative to human clinical judgment, but that in turn calls for a recalibration of the doctrine of liability, informed consent, and accountability.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Clinical Decision Making, Medical Liability, Informed Consent, Healthcare Regulation, Data Protection, Liability.
