Ethics in Digital Health
Design digital health ethically by learning consent, privacy, regulation, and responsible user care
Duration
4 weeksWeekly study
2 hours
Ethics in Digital Health
Understand ethics, privacy, and regulation in digital health
Digital health innovations can improve care, but they also raise important ethical and legal questions about consent, privacy, and patient safety.
This course helps professionals understand responsible innovation through user research, informed consent, privacy protection, and UK GDPR compliance. You’ll explore ethical frameworks, learn to conduct user research properly, and understand how regulation influences design and deployment.
It’s designed for people developing digital clinical solutions who want to build ethical practice from the start.
Explore ethics and innovation
Learn the role of ethics in digital health innovation and the theories behind responsible decision-making. You’ll discover how ethics shapes product development from the earliest stages.
Building this framework helps you approach digital health innovation thoughtfully and responsibly.
Apply ethical user research and consent
Understand the stages of user research and how to obtain informed consent properly. You’ll learn how participant information materials support trust and clarity.
These skills help you apply ethical thinking to research with users and patients throughout the development process.
Address privacy, security, and regulation
Examine privacy, security, and safety concerns in digital health products. By studying UK GDPR and related legal frameworks you’ll understand how regulation influences design, testing, and deployment of digital health products.
You’ll walk away with the ability to identify common risks and mitigation strategies whilst learning to protect users.
Syllabus
Week 1
The role of ethics in innovation
Welcome to the course
What to expect, who should take this course, and learning outcomes.
Why is ethics important in digital health?
Why should digital health innovators think about ethics and what does that mean for you?
Ethical theories and perspectives
If you've got an idea for a digital solution to a clinical need, how do you start thinking about ethics? This introduction to ethical theories and perspectives will give you a framework to guide your thinking.
Weekly Conclusion Review
Multiple choice questions to check understanding of recently covered material.
Week 2
Patient empowerment and user research
Patient empowerment
What is an empowered patient and why is it a useful concept in digital health?
User research as an ethical practice
This activity will discuss the key stages of user research. If we do not understand users in context, we risk designing systems that are ethically defensible in theory but harmful in practice.
Weekly Conclusion Review
Multiple choice questions to check understanding of recently covered material.
Week 3
Formal ethical approval and informed consent
Ethical approval and formal procedures
What are the key ethical considerations during user testing? At what point do you need formal ethical approval? This module addresses these questions.
Informed consent
This module explores informed consent and how to ensure users only participate in research if they fully understand what it involves and agree to take part.
Weekly Conclusion Review
Multiple choice questions to check understanding of recently covered material.
Week 4
Compliant and secure digital health products
Privacy and security
Privacy and security are different concepts. This module explores how they differ, and what they mean in the context of digital health.
Developing compliant products
This activity will give you an overview on the role of UK GDPR in digital health and how to make sure you are compliant.
Ethics in practice
In our final activity we will listen to the founder of a digital health company talk about their experience of developing and delivering digital health solutions ethically, and look at potential consequences of non-compliance.
Weekly Conclusion Review
Multiple choice questions to check understanding of recently covered material.
Learning on this course
On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.
What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...
- Assess the legal and ethical issues associated with digital health technology
- Explore the role of user-centric practice and public engagement in responsible innovation
- Compare ethical theories and perspectives
- Describe the empowered patient model
- Identify issues of informed consent and how to communicate them to patients
- Apply concepts of privacy and security to digital solution development
- Demonstrate compliance with UK GDPR
Who is the course for?
This course is ideal for digital health professionals, clinicians, researchers, and anyone developing clinical technology who wants to understand ethical frameworks, privacy requirements, and responsible innovation practices.
Who will you learn with?
Lecturer in Digital Health
Who developed the course?
University of Bristol
University of Bristol is one of the leading institutions among the UK’s Russell Group of universities and is recognised for its research and academic excellence.
LEAP
LEAP is an EPSRC-funded Digital Health Hub that aims to cultivate a multidisciplinary, entrepreneurial, cross-sector Digital Health community in South West England and Wales. The Hub is providing opportunities for training, research and collaboration through three core programmes and a wide partnership network.
What's included?
This is a premium course. These courses are designed for professionals from specific industries looking to learn with a smaller group of like-minded individuals.
- Learn best practices from experts
- Learn from the experience of other health professionals
- Fit learning around your schedule with unlimited access
- Get evidence of learning outcomes and CPD hours
- Certificate of Achievement to prove your success when you're eligible
- Download and print your Certificate of Achievement anytime
Still want to know more? Check out our FAQs
Learning on FutureLearn
Your learning, your rules
- Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
- Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
- Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores
Join a global classroom
- Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
- Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
- Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others
Map your progress
- As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
- Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
- Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate
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