Professor Christopher Hood Chair of the Working Party Summing up Professor Christopher Hood Chair of the Working Party
Type of personalisation In what sense can these technologies deliver ‘personalised healthcare’? (p.183) Type of personalisation Tailored to individual Whole person Consumer good Responsibility on individuals Online health information ~ Online health records Online medicines X Telemedicine Genetic profiling Body imaging
What consumer-choice challenges arise from these technologies? Many developments lead to new ways of providing healthcare as a consumer good Choice needs to come with good information and advice Individual choice has to be balanced with fairness and social solidarity
What responsibility challenges arise from these technologies? Dangers in stressing more individual responsibility when information is ambiguous or imperfect May impersonalise rather than personalise healthcare if they bypass expert mediation by family doctors Responsibility for handling risk should be handled by those best placed to manage it – state, doctors or individuals
In a nutshell The technologies are still developing They mix potential benefits and harms They bring key ethical values into conflict They could transform medical practice, but hard to predict how much use will be made of them in the future They need close and regular scrutiny We should be cautious of exaggerated claims made about these developments