The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has published a new statement outlining its position on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in pharmacy.
In the statement, published April 20, the GPhC said that while AI “has the potential to benefit patients and the public”, it also “creates new risks that need to be managed”.
Read more: AI and automation in pharmacy: Transformative, risky, or both?
It added that pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacies must meet the regulator’s standards at all times, whether using AI “to support the delivery of pharmacy services” or “in other areas such as pharmacy education and training”.
Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are also “personally accountable for their professional practice” when AI is being used, it added, and “must always be prepared to justify their decisions and actions”.
Read more: Is the GPhC proposing that Superintendents must use AI?
The regulator noted that AI “is developing rapidly” and said it will “continue to keep [its] standards and guidance under review to ensure they support the safe and effective use of AI in pharmacy”.
“We will also continue to work with other regulatory bodies to consider the impact of AI in healthcare, and collectively seek to address any emergent regulatory gaps or overlaps that may emerge,” it added.
GPhC standards
The statement also set out several responsibilities for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians when using AI, including:
- understanding how AI tools are intended to be used, their limitations and biases
- ensuring they have undertaken relevant training and have the necessary knowledge and skills for any AI tools they use
- reviewing outputs from AI tools for accuracy, bias or misleading information
- meeting patient confidentiality and data protection requirements
- explaining to patients how AI is being used in their care, and any associated risks or benefits
- not using AI in any way that puts patients and the public at risk of harm.
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It also said the GPhC expects pharmacy owners and superintendent pharmacists to:
- carry out due diligence to make sure AI tools are safe, appropriate and used in line with their intended purpose
- have clear governance arrangements, including risk assessments, data security, patient confidentiality and information governance
- make sure any AI tools used are supported by suitable training, so staff understand the system and its limitations
- make sure AI tools are monitored and reviewed as part of routine quality and risk management
Read more: AI firm dispenses ‘record’ 41,600 items in one month
The regulator added that it “is not appropriate for a pharmacist or a pharmacy technician to use AI to create full revalidation submissions or falsify information” - and that if AI is used to support revalidation, it must be “done in a responsible and transparent way”.
And it said education providers should support learners to understand the “benefits and risks of AI”, develop the skills to use the technology “ethically, safely and effectively”, “meet GPhC standards and learning outcomes” and “ensure the authenticity of assessments”.
“New challenges”
GPhC chief executive Kathie Cashell said AI “has the potential to support improvements in pharmacy services and patient care” but “also brings new challenges”.
“We want to support everyone working in pharmacy to use AI effectively to improve patient care, at the same time as protecting patient safety,” she added.
“We are planning further work in relation to AI as technologies continue to develop, including as part of the reviews of the standards we set for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and our standards for registered pharmacies.”
Read more: RPS calls for ‘greater clarity’ in GPhC’s draft standards
It comes after an AI-powered digital health company announced that it had dispensed a “record” 41,600 prescription items through its 24/7 automated distribution centre last month.
MedPal AI said its dispensing activity for March marks the “highest monthly volume since operations commenced” last October, and represents a growth of 27.5%.
