Why is Artificial Intelligence used in health and care services?

Artificial Intelligence can help health and care services by doing things that are usually done by a person.

AI has the potential to make a significant difference to health and care through its ability to understand and review lots of information.

Examples of AI being used in health and care services in Kent and Medway

  • Ambient Voice Technology (AVT) which helps doctors and nurses take notes during your appointment. This means they can spend more time talking and listening to you, and less time typing on a computer. AVT listens quietly in the background and writes down important things the doctor says.
  • AI is being used with new brain-scanning technology to help detect conditions like dementia faster and improve mental health diagnosis at Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust. 
  • AI systems are being used to respond to patient enquiries and reduce waiting times for treatment at Medway NHS Foundation Trust.  

It is essential that plans to use AI are informed by insight from people and communities to ensure public trust, and confidence is built with the use of the tools.

As AI becomes increasingly integrated into clinical pathways, NHS Kent and Medway recognised the importance of involving patients, staff, and communities in shaping how these tools are used. The Kent and Medway Digital and Data Involvement Group, comprised of a range of people with diverse backgrounds and digital and data leaders across the health and care system in Kent and Medway, have co-designed clear principles on the use of AI in health and care services across the county.

These principles were co‑designed to provide reassurance, strengthen informed consent, and ensure that AI meets the needs of the local population. 

How were the principles co-designed? 

The development of principles for the use of AI in healthcare in Kent and Medway stems from the need to ensure that emerging AI technologies are introduced safely, ethically, and in a way that maintains public trust.  

The principles were developed by:

  • Kent and Medway Digital and Data Involvement Group, comprised of people from diverse backgrounds across Kent and Medway and digital and data leaders across the health and care system, co-design the principles through a series of workshops in December 2025 and January and February 2026. For each session, participants were provided with a stimulus pack containing insights from people and communities in Kent and Medway. Accessible and inclusive approaches were used to support the diverse needs of participants. 
  • The principles were informed by insight on the use of Ambient Voice Technology from residents in Kent and Medway in a survey produced by Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex.  
  • The insight from the Kent and Medway Social Licence: Our Data, For Our Good: How we use your information to help us all, fed into the development of the AI principles.

The safe integration of AI into healthcare relies not only on robust technology and ethical oversight, but also on a commitment to ongoing dialogue with patients, staff, and communities.

AI is a supportive tool that enhances rather than replaces the human connection at the centre of healthcare.

The final decisions as to care coordination and care planning is always made between medical professional and patient.

The co-designed principles on the use of AI in healthcare sit alongside the Kent and Medway Social Licence: Our Data, For Our Good: How we use your information to help us all and supports public trust and consent with the use of data by health and care organisations in Kent and Medway. The principles are a commitment by the Kent and Medway Integrated Care System (ICS) on how they will use AI.

We, the Kent and Medway ICS, commit to review the principles on the use of AI and the Kent and Medway Social Licence with our people and communities in March 2027. 

A graphic showing the AI principles.

 

 

Principles on the use of Artificial Intelligence in healthcare in Kent and Medway 

Human responsibility and oversight in decisions about people’s health and wellbeing

  • We recognise that the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is to enable health and care professionals to focus on the needs of the person through diagnosis, treatment and care, along with reducing time spent on administrative tasks.
  • AI must never replace the judgement of a health and care professional.

Transparency on the use of Artificial Intelligence

  • We recognise that our people and communities must always know when and why AI is being used, what it is doing, and how decisions are made. Information on the use of AI must be accessible, honest, and free of jargon. 
  • We commit to only using AI when it clearly improves care, safety and the quality of an individual and communities' health and wellbeing. 
  • We recognise that AI is not perfect. 

Your choice on the use of Artificial Intelligence

  • We will tell you about your rights and choices when it comes to the use of AI.    
  • We will explain what happens if you choose to say no (opt out) to the use of AI, and we will do this in a fair and honest way.
  • We respect that people want more control over how their health data is used.

Safety and accountability on the use of Artificial Intelligence

  • We will explain what we do to protect people's data when we use AI. If something goes wrong, we will explain what happened and how we will fix it. 
  • We will explain how long voice recordings are stored - for instance when Ambient Voice Technology is used to record and write down important information during healthcare appointments with doctors or nurses.
  • We will explain who is accountable for the use of AI.
  • We recognise that AI is constantly changing, and we commit to continuous review.

Fair and accurate use of Artificial Intelligence

  • We agree to use AI in a fair and equal way, listening to concerns people may have around the use if AI, this includes people who have poorer health outcomes.
  • We recognise that there are bias within AI. We will proactively be aware, and design solutions with AI that do not enhance bias.
  • We will tell you about your rights, the risks, and the benefits of the use of AI.
  • Everyone - including staff and the public - shares the job of making sure data used within AI is correct.

Listening to communities

  • We will make sure local people are at the heart of making decisions on use of AI.
  • We will ensure local people are involved in the design of AI solutions across Kent and Medway.
  • We want local people to feel respected and involved.

Resources

Health Innovation Kent Surrey Sussex has published a set of resources to support conversations with patients about using ambient voice technology (AVT) in healthcare appointments.