Who authorizes clinical AI decisions?
A hospital authorizes clinical AI through defined institutional decision rights. Technology, security, privacy, legal, quality, and governance functions may recommend, approve, constrain, or veto deployment. Qualified clinicians retain authority for clinical judgment, while a named institutional owner authorizes the system's permitted role, production use, and escalation boundaries.
A hospital authorizes clinical AI through defined institutional decision rights. Technology, security, privacy, legal, quality, and governance functions may recommend, approve, constrain, or veto deployment. Qualified clinicians retain authority for clinical judgment, while a named institutional owner authorizes the system's permitted role, production use, and escalation boundaries.
“Human in the loop” is insufficient when the human lacks defined authority, competence, time, evidence, or the practical ability to stop the system.
- A named production-authorization owner.•
- A defined clinical authority and scope of judgment.•
- Documented approval, veto, escalation, and exception rights.•
- Authorized system remit and prohibited actions.•
- Reauthorization when material behavior, use, or operating conditions change.•
Committee participation is not decision authority. Authorization must identify who can approve, stop, override, or accept the residual risk.
Accountable authority: The health system assigns authority. Clinical decisions remain with qualified clinical professionals; enterprise production authorization remains an institutional responsibility.
See how boards should evaluate consequential AI and what happens when evidence is insufficient. Review the public evidence basis. Review the practitioner and standards context. Return to the Decision Governance library.
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