At BMJ Group, our Digital Health business area produces a range of digital resources for clinical decision support and medical education, such as BMJ Best Practice. We are witnessing a rapidly increasing interest in how our digital resources can be used in the context of machine learning and artificial intelligence. In response, we are ensuring that our resources contribute to these innovations.

In doing so, however, we are equally keen to ensure that our actions are ethical and safe. This is especially so in the area of active clinical decision support. That’s why we have a dedicated team of external experts we can rely on to help guide our decisions.

Members of the expert committee on ethics and artificial intelligence advise us on issues such as avoiding harm, patient autonomy, transparency and explicability, human agency and oversight, safety, security, legality, confidentiality, or data governance. The committee is advisory—Digital Health is responsible for its decisions.

The committee has several roles

1. Clarifying, reviewing, and developing policies relating to artificial intelligence, clinical decision support, and digital health

2. Advising the BMJ Digital Health team on ethical questions that might arise during existing or new lines of work

3. Advising the BMJ Digital Health team on new partnerships that it might develop with organisations that are creating artificial intelligence software

4. Taking part in roundtables on important issues or controversies related to artificial intelligence in healthcare

How the committee works

Members of our ethics committee correspond and meet on an as-needed basis when our BMJ Digital Health business area needs advice. Individuals are contacted based on their expertise in areas such as avoiding harm, patient autonomy, transparency and explicability, human agency and oversight, safety, security, legality, confidentiality, or data governance. The group will also meet—but no more than once per year. Meetings occur at the London head office office in the UK, with remote participation possible.

Ethics committee members

  • Louise Crowe, Director Customer & Markets, Digital Health, BMJ Group (Chair)
  • Yvonne Ridge, Head of Product, Digital Health, BMJ Group
  • Chris Wroe, Head of Informatics, Digital Health, BMJ Group
  • Kieran Walsh, Clinical Director, BMJ Group
  • Helen MacDonald, Research Integrity Editor, The BMJ
  • Timothy Morgan, Data Protection Compliance Manager, BMJ Group (involved as expertise required)
  • Clare Robinson, Lawyer, BMJ Group (to be involved as expertise required)
  • Dipak Kalra, President, The European Institute for Innovation through Health Data; Professor of Health Informatics, UCL; Visiting Professor, University of Ghent
  • Dr Anirudh Kumar, Specialty Doctor in Acute Medicine, Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
  • Jools E Symons, Patient and Public Involvement Manager, Communication Skills Lead, Lived Experience Network Lead, University of Leeds
  • Nazrul Islam, Research Editor, The BMJ
  • Sara Payne, Health Regulation and Ethics
  • Ellis Parry, Director, Data Privacy Compliance Solutions Ltd
  • Malcolm Duncan, Healthcare Information Technology Consultant, BMJ Group
  • Observers: Up to two members from BMJ Digital Health may join the meetings as observers

Further resources

“As we embrace the potential of artificial intelligence in healthcare, we remain steadfast in our focus on ensuring that the innovations we create are ethical, safe, and patient focused. Our work in the Digital Health business area at BMJ Group combines cutting-edge technology with rigorous ethical oversight to support clinicians and improve health outcomes worldwide.”

Yvonne Ridge
Head of Product, Digital Health, BMJ Group