Muscat — The Legal Conference on Legislation and Digital Transformation in the Health Sector, organized by the Oman College of Health Sciences, concluded Tuesday with a set of key recommendations to strengthen governance, legal clarity, and regional cooperation in digital healthcare.
The final day opened with a session on ethical guidelines versus enforceable legal frameworks, followed by discussions on global best practices for regulating digital health. Participants also examined the expanding role of artificial intelligence (AI) in diagnostics, treatment planning, and advanced surgeries.
Dr. Asma al Balushi, Consultant in Emergency Medicine at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, highlighted that medical ethics are grounded in the principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice, reinforced by international standards such as the Declaration of Geneva, the Hippocratic Oath, and the Declaration of Helsinki. She noted that national laws, liability regulations, and data protection frameworks further refine how these ethics are applied in practice.
Dr. Abla Khaled Elfeky, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Civil and Commercial Procedural Law at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport in Egypt, stressed that AI is now “a must for medical practice,” enabling precision and efficiency. However, she warned of significant challenges in the Arab world, including weak internet infrastructure, limited AI expertise, and reliance on external innovation.
The conference concluded with several recommendations:
- Establish a comprehensive legal framework for digital medical services and research.
- Enact specific AI regulations in healthcare, aligned with global best practices.
- Safeguard health and biometric data under national and international data protection standards.
- Expand automation in healthcare processes with legal, judicial, and technical coordination.
- Strengthen regional and international cooperation, sharing best practices in digital health.
- Create a national reference body to oversee digital health governance.
- Continue holding forums, workshops, and seminars to support digital health transformation.
Participants emphasized that legal clarity, ethical safeguards, and technical capacity-building are vital for building trust and ensuring safe, inclusive adoption of digital health innovations in Oman and across the region.
