Triage 4.0: On Death Algorithms and Technological Selection. Is Today’s Data- Driven Medical System Still Compatible with the Constitution?

Helbing, Dirk ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9898-0101 and Beschorner, Thomas ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7097-647X and Frey, Bruno ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5380-6655 and Diekmann, Andres ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7344-5591 and Hagendorff, Thilo ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4633-2153 and Seele, Peter ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6456-4003 and Spiekermann-Hoff, Sarah ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5481-3961 and van den Hoven, Jeroen ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2376-3185 and Zwitter, Andrej ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7391-141X (2021) Triage 4.0: On Death Algorithms and Technological Selection. Is Today’s Data- Driven Medical System Still Compatible with the Constitution? Journal of European Continuing Medical Education, 10 (1). p. 1989243. ISSN 2161-4083

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Abstract

Health data bear great promises for a healthier and happier life, but they also make us vulnerable. Making use of millions or billions of data points, Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are now creating new benefits. For sure, harvesting Big Data can have great potentials for the health system, too. It can support accurate diagnoses, better treatments and greater cost effectiveness. However, it can also have undesirable implications, often in the sense of undesired side effects, which may in fact be terrible. Examples for this, as discussed in this article, are discrimination, the mechanisation of death, and genetic, social, behavioural or technological selection, which may imply eugenic effects or social Darwinism. As many unintended effects become visible only after years, we still lack sufficient criteria, long-term experience and advanced methods to reliably exclude that things may go terribly wrong. Handing over decision-making, responsibility or control to machines, could be dangerous and irresponsible. It would also be in serious conflict with human rights and our constitution.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	Triage, trolley problem, big data, artificial intelligence, technological selection, eugenics, ethics
Divisions:	Departments > Wirtschaftsinformatik u. Operations Mgmt > Wirtschaftsinformatik und Gesellschaft Kompetenzzentren > Sustainability Transf. & Responsibility
Version of the Document:	Published
Depositing User:	Gertraud Novotny
Date Deposited:	15 Dec 2021 13:36
Last Modified:	15 Dec 2021 13:36
Related URLs:	Publisher
FIDES Link:	https://bach.wu.ac.at/d/research/results/102558/
URI:	https://epub.wu.ac.at/id/eprint/8464

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