A survey, commissioned by the Health Foundation, has revealed three-quarters of the public support sharing some of their personal health data for the development of AI systems in the NHS. More than 7,000 members of the public, aged 16 years and older, answered the survey.

AI is currently being used in healthcare to support staff with tasks such as clinical decision-making, analysing scans and test results, and scheduling appointments.

The UK-wide polling found that 59 percent were willing to share data on areas such as their eye health, 58 percent were willing to share the medicines they are taking, and 57 percent were willing to share information about any long-term illnesses they have.

However, the results found less willingness to share some types of data. 47 percent were willing to share smartphone-tracked data, such as sleep activity, and 44 percent were willing to share sexual health information.

The polling, published in a new report by the Health Foundation, also revealed differences in willingness to share data between socioeconomic groups.

Notably, people in households where the main earner is semi-skilled, unskilled, or not in work are significantly less likely to support the use of any of their health data for AI development than people from other socioeconomic groups, according to the report.

Analysing the results, the Health Foundation noted these findings highlight the importance of engaging all social groups in the development of new technologies, to ensure they work for everyone and do not inadvertently create or worsen inequalities. This concern was also reinforced by another finding from the survey.

Many people are willing to take part in activities to help shape technology use in the NHS, such as completing a survey or participating in a workshop. Between 29 percent and 45 percent of people are willing to help without being paid, depending on the type of activity.

The wide-ranging polling also found the public is hesitant about technologies that might be seen to ‘distance’ patients from health care staff or come between them, such as care robots. People named the ability to see and talk to NHS staff as their most important consideration when thinking about technology use in health care, with two-fifths of older people stating that they are particularly concerned about this.

Also, public trust in the NHS holding personal health data is reported to be strong. Around two-thirds of the public were found to have either high or moderate levels of trust in the NHS with their health data.

Director of Innovation and Improvement at the Health Foundation, Dr Malte Gerhold, said: “It is only with the public’s support that the government will successfully achieve its ambition of shifting the NHS from analogue to digital.

“It is encouraging that most people are open to sharing their data to develop AI systems in the NHS. When properly implemented, we know that AI has the potential to free up staff by supporting clinical and administrative tasks. However, these systems are only as good as the data used to design and develop them.

“There are significant differences between socioeconomic groups in levels of support for sharing data for AI development and for taking part in activities to shape how technology is used in the NHS.

“Policymakers, NHS leaders and those involved in designing and implementing health care technologies must proactively engage with people across different social groups to ensure that health care technologies help tackle inequalities, rather than worsen them.”

According to a previous survey commissioned by the Health Foundation, more than three quarters of NHS staff support the use of AI to help with patient care, with more than four-fifths also in favour of its use for administrative tasks.

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