AI, Health Equity, and Ethics Symposium

Overview:

The MIT Critical Data, Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, and Priscilla King Gray (PKG) Public Service Center’s AI, Health Equity, and Ethics Symposium explores the theme of epistemic humility, cultural humility, and diverse perspectives, alongside meaningful community involvement, to transform the way we think, learn, and collaborate to prevent AI from perpetuating existing disparities. Opening with a keynote by Dr. Tereza Hendl, a philosopher and bioethicist, the event explores broad ethical frameworks and specific challenges, such as the limitations of AI and bias. Workshops will focus on bias mitigation strategies co-designed with marginalized communities, emphasizing participatory action research to democratize innovation and promote just healthcare outcomes. By centering community expertise and lived experiences, the symposium encourages a reimagining of AI’s role in healthcare—ensuring that technological advances work to reduce, not reinforce, disparities.

Event Details:

Date: Thursday, January 16th, 2025

Time: 10:00 AM – 3:30 PM

Location: MIT E90-1201 (1 Main St)

Agenda:

9:00 AM	Event Registration & Networking
10:00 AM	Keynote by Tereza Hendl
11:00 AM	Break
11:10 AM	AI and Healthy Equity Panel
12:15 PM	Lunch
12:45 PM	Facilitated Discussion Led by Katia Powell-Laurent
1:15 PM	Break
1:30 PM	Workshop Sessions
2:30 PM	Break
2:45 PM	Call to Action and Closing Remarks

Workshops:

Workshop 1: Harnessing humility and systems thinking to shape AI in academic medicine

Presented by: Jed Gonzalo, Laura Hawley, Leslie LeConte, Brock Mutcheson

A core attribute of a patient-centered physician is humility, yet successfully inculcating this attribute in trainees is an elusive goal. Medical education is driven by objective measures of competence in domains such as medical knowledge and patient care, despite broad recognition of a need for physicians who exhibit the attributes of a “systems citizen” – a healthcare professional who uses systems thinking knowledge, skills, and mindset in their professional role to contribute to the holistic needs of individual patients, populations of patients, and the health system to achieve the best outcomes (Gonzalo et al., 2023). Applying the principles of systems thinking from the beginning of training equips learners with the skills and habits necessary to critically evaluate their environment, of particular urgency with the growth of AI and a healthcare delivery landscape in need of re-design. Imprinting upon learners early the meta-cognitive elements of systems thinking is an approach to instilling epistemic humility in our future physicians, who will practice medicine in a world where critically appraising tools and information is increasingly difficult. The primary objective of this workshop is to help participants learn about and practice systems thinking skills as they explore the use and development of AI applications in academic medicine. Examples from medical education and healthcare will be used to demonstrate how systems thinking can be used to evaluate the applicability and challenges of AI in academic medicine.

Workshop 2: Caring in the age of AI: navigating healthcare challenges and opportunities

Presented by: Lisa Lehmann, Alice Rangel Texeira

This workshop explores the intersections of artificial intelligence and care in healthcare, reflecting on the implications of AI technologies in care-related contexts. Drawing upon diverse ethical frameworks—such as feminism, decolonial theory, and principle-based bioethics—participants will critically examine how these approaches evaluate the integration of AI in care practices. The session will explore real-world cases, including AI applications in Patient-Centered Care, and Caregiver Support, as well as care within broader systems. Emphasizing our mutual dependency on all forms of life, the workshop highlights the interconnectedness of human health with the health of the planet. By analyzing the sociopolitical implications of AI technologies through different lenses, this workshop aims to uncover nuanced ethical challenges and opportunities presented by AI in healthcare. Attendees will engage in discussions on how AI systems can support care practices at multiple levels while addressing systemic inequalities and sustainability of both human and environmental well-being.

Workshop 3: Equity by design: advancing AI in healthcare through community engagement, epistemic justice, and policy innovation

Presented by: Amelia Fiske, Naigwe Kalema, Irene Dankwa-Mullen

As AI continues to transform healthcare, ensuring equitable and ethical implementation remains a critical challenge. This interactive workshop will explore equity-centric approaches to AI in healthcare, emphasizing the importance of community engagement, epistemic justice, and policy redesign. We will discuss how to amplify diverse voices in AI development, integrate community-driven data governance, and design policy frameworks that prioritize health equity. Through case studies and collaborative exercises, participants will identify actionable strategies to bridge systemic gaps and redefine AI’s role in achieving just and inclusive healthcare outcomes. This session invites participants to co-create solutions that place fairness, transparency, and inclusion at the heart of AI innovation in healthcare and medicine.

Workshop 4: Advancing Health Equity through Participatory Action

Presented by: Katia Powell-Laurent, Rodrigo Gameiro, Catherine Bielick, Vippy Yee

This panel explores advancing health equity through inclusive innovation, ethical practices, and community-driven approaches to building AI. By expanding Participatory Action Research (PAR) into frameworks that integrate community-based research with design-thinking, we aim to foster shared ownership and sustained community involvement in AI systems.

Key themes include Relational Accountability—building long-term relationships with communities—and Equity by Design, addressing systemic bias and promoting fairness throughout AI workflows.

The discussion will highlight transitioning to community-driven AI, where marginalized communities lead problem-solving and validation. Strategies for decentralizing AI control, creating inclusive infrastructure, and using tools like Equity Impact Assessments (EIAs) to mitigate bias will be emphasized. Case studies of successful and failed applications will provide real-world insights.

Actionable frameworks, such as Deliberative Dialogues among stakeholders and Participatory AI Ethics Boards, will be proposed to ensure ethical scaling of community-driven AI models, reimagining AI’s role in advancing healthcare equity.

Featured Speakers:

Event Organizers:

Event Sponsors:

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Tereza Hendl	Tereza is a philosopher and bioethicist, currently working as a Co2libri Visiting Fellow at Humboldt University of Berlin and Associated Researcher at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Her research investigates concerns of vulnerability, refusal, empowerment, justice and solidarity, and the ethics and epistemology of health technologies and interventions. She is currently editing the book mHealth: Intersectional Ethics for a Global Society to be published with Oxford University Press. She is the co-founder of the RUTA Association for Central, South, and Eastern Europe, Baltic, Caucasus, Central and Northern Asia Studies in Global Conversation.
Panelist: Dr. Marzyeh Ghassemi	Dr. Marzyeh Ghassemi is an Associate Professor at MIT in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) and Institute for Medical Engineering & Science (IMES). She holds MIT affiliations with the Jameel Clinic, LIDS, IDSS, and CSAIL. For examples of short- and long-form talks Professor Ghassemi has given, see her Forbes lightning talk, and her ICML keynote. Professor Ghassemi holds a Germeshausen Career Development Professorship, and was named a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar and one of MIT Tech Review’s 35 Innovators Under 35. In 2024, she received an NSF CAREER award, and Google Research Scholar Award. Prior to her PhD in Computer Science at MIT, she received an MSc. degree in biomedical engineering from Oxford University as a Marshall Scholar, and B.S. degrees in computer science and electrical engineering as a Goldwater Scholar at New Mexico State University. Professor Ghassemi work spans computer science and clinical venues, including NeurIPS, KDD, AAAI, MLHC, JAMIA, JMIR, JMLR, AMIA-CRI, Nature Medicine, Nature Translational Psychiatry, and Critical Care. Her work has been featured in popular press such as MIT News, The Boston Globe, and The Huffington Post.
Panelist: Leo Anthony Celi, MD, MPH, MSc	Leo is the principal investigator behind the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC) and its offsprings, MIMIC-CXR, MIMIC-ED, MIMIC-ECHO, and MIMIC-ECG. With close to 100k users worldwide, an open codebase, and close to 10k publications in Google Scholar, the datasets have undoubtedly shaped the course of machine learning in healthcare in the United States and beyond. In partnership with hospitals, universities and professional societies across the globe, Leo and his team have organized over 50 datathons in 22 countries, bringing together students, clinicians, researchers, and engineers to leverage data routinely collected in the process of care.
Panelist: Hector Acevedo	Hector was born in El Salvador and diagnosed with a rare form of Spondyloepiphyseal Dysplasia, a congenital disorder that affects the skeleton and presents significant health challenges. Due to limited medical resources available at the time, Hector and his mother Amanda moved to Cambridge, MA, in search of better medical care and opportunities for a better life. Hector attended Hamilton College as a member of The Posse Foundation, merit-based leadership scholarship that recognizes the potential of students from inner cities, often overlooked by small liberal arts colleges. He graduated in 2008 with a degree in Women’s Studies and Education. As a proud son of Cambridge with Salvadoran roots, his commitment to community service extends to his roles on various non-profit boards and committees. Hector is dedicated to “changing the way change happens” and continues to create civic engagement and employment opportunities for Cambridge residents.
Facilitator: Katia Powell-Laurent	Katia Powell-Laurent is an award-winning nutrition and wellness expert, a practicing Holistic Nutritionist, Birth Doula, Maternal Health Researcher, Childbirth Educator (CBE) Trainee, and Lactation Counselor. She’s a distinguished member of the MIT linQ Faculty, a Servant Leader at the Greater Boston Birth Equity Coalition, and a Co-Lead Member of the Massachusetts Doula Coalition. She is the founder of HUED Mamas co. (dba Black Girls Nutrition) – the first digital nutrition company that recognizes the unique health challenges faced by Women of the Black Diaspora, she has developed culturally competent, comprehensive nutrition solutions. BGN offers tailored nutrition guidance to women at every life stage, from overall wellness to reproductive health. She is revolutionizing reproductive health with her innovative nutrition app that addresses the unique infertility challenges faced by Black women, including often unspoken inequities in reproductive health. From preconception to postpartum and beyond, HUED Mamas Co. aims to improve maternal health outcomes and fertility, breaking down barriers of guilt and shame often associated with Black Fertility issues. To date, Katia has helped her current and past clients lose over 100,000 lbs. She has been featured in Essence Magazine, Boston Business Journal, is a Robert Woods Johnson Scholar, completed five years of doctoral studies in nutrition/health policy and has 25+ years of expertise in nutrition, maternal health, health equity, food justice, public health and medicine.
Dr. Jed Gonzalo	Dr. Jed Gonzalo is the Senior Associate Dean for Medical Education at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and a tenured professor of medicine and health systems and implementation science. He holds an MD from Penn State College of Medicine and completed his internal medicine residency and chief residency at the Beth Israel Deaconess in Boston, where he was Instructor at the Harvard Medical School. After a fellowship in General Internal Medicine/Medical Education at the University of Pittsburg, Dr. Gonzalo spent 10 years at Penn State College of Medicine as Associate Dean for Health Systems Education. A recognized expert in systems thinking and health systems science, he has led initiatives to incorporate these concepts into medical curricula, developed online modules for the AMA Health Systems Science Learning Series, and written extensively on their application in healthcare. Dr. Gonzalo frequently leads workshops and gives presentations on system thinking and has received funding from organizations including AMA, AAMC, HRSA, and the Josiah Macy Foundation.
Dr. Leslie LaConte	Leslie LaConte earned her PhD in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics from University of Minnesota, conducting thesis work on the molecular mechanism of muscle contraction, and completed a post-doc at Georgia Tech with a focus on the use of nanoparticles in medical imaging. Recent research interests have explored the clinical relevance of missense mutations in neurodevelopmental disorders through a structural biology lens. For over 10 year, Dr. LaConte has served in multiple leadership roles at the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, first establishing the school’s comprehensive and longitudinal research program for all medical students and now, as Director of Foundational Sciences Curriculum, working closely with VTCSOM medical education leadership to develop a horizontally and vertically integrated curriculum with a focus on graduating patient-centered physicians who embody the three synergistic professional identities of Lifelong Master Adaptive Learners, Scientist Physicians, and System Citizens. Dr. LaConte has received several institutional teaching awards and has publications in both the biomedical and medical education literature.
Dr. Brock Mutcheson	Brock Mutcheson earned his Ph.D. in Educational Research and Evaluation with a dual focus on applied statistics and measurement from Virginia Tech. His primary research interests lie in applying measurement and implementation science to inform organizational and individual development. He is currently the Principal Investigator on the NBME Stemmler Funded Grant exploring validity related questions related to measuring medical student abilities in systems-thinking. As an assessment and program evaluation leader at the medical school since 2016, Brock plays a pivotal role in advancing the institution’s assessment and program evaluation initiatives. He collaborates with curriculum directors to refine assessment methodologies, supports data-driven decision-making, and fosters educational scholarship across the institution. Prior to this role, he held several teaching and leadership positions, bringing a wealth of experience to his work in academic medicine.
Irene Dankwa-Mullen	As a seasoned physician executive and national thought leader, Irene brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the forefront of healthcare innovation. With a focus on promoting quality health and addressing inequities, she currently serves as the Chief Health Officer at Marti Health, a pioneering health services and digital health equity startup. Prior to her current endeavors, Irene made significant contributions as the Chief Health Equity Officer at IBM Watson Health. Her work received widespread recognition, earning her a place in the prestigious IBM Industry Academy of distinguished leaders. Before her time at IBM, Irene held various leadership roles at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where she spearheaded transformative research initiatives to advance the science of health disparities. Her dedication to this field earned her numerous awards and professional recognition, including the NIH Director’s Award for sustained and outstanding leadership.
Amelia Fiske	Amelia is a Senior Research Associate at the Institute for the History and Ethics of Medicine at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). She is a cultural anthropologist and has been working in an interdisciplinary bioethical environment since 2017. Her work is situated at the intersection of cultural anthropology, feminist science and technology studies, social medicine and bioethics, and environmental and humanities studies. She has over a decade of experience conducting interdisciplinary qualitative and ethnographic research in two key areas: 1) anthropological and critical social science approaches to bioethics, artificial intelligence, and digital and sociotechnical changes in knowledge production; 2) ethnographic attention to issues of socio-ecological justice, experiences of toxicity in the context of extraction, participatory research methods, and graphic arts.
Naigwe Kalema	Nai is a PhD candidate in Innovation and Public Policy at the Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (UCL IIPP), UCL (University College London). Her doctoral research looks at the global political economy of digital transformation, specifically examining how global digital and AI governance influences public-sector digital transformation in the Global South. Specifically, Nai’s empirical cases look at digital public infrastructure and digital-era government projects linked to digital ID in Kenya and Uganda. Nai’s doctoral research is funded by Vinnova (The Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems) and UCL IIPP Policy Studio. Nai holds an ALM concentrating in International Relations and a Graduate Certificate in Social Justice, both degrees from Harvard (HES) and a BA from George Washington University. She also performed university coursework at Howard University and graduate coursework at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Nai is a member of the Tierra Común and ESRC Digital Good Network.
Alice Rangel Texeira	Alice is a PhD candidate in Philosophy at the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB). Her research focuses on the ethics of artificial intelligence from a decolonial feminist perspective. She is part of the POyEticas – Politics and Ethics of Public Health research project at UAB, and a member of the Group of Humanistic Studies in Science and Technology at UAB. She is a member of the Data and Artificial Intelligence Coalition (DAIG) of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Visitation group of the Research Data Alliance (RDA).
Lisa S. Lehmann	Lisa Lehmann is a primary care physician, bioethicist, and health services researcher. She is Director of Research at Verily, Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health. From 2020-2023 Lisa was Director of Bioethics and Trust at Google. She previously held positions as Chief Medical Officer (2017-2020) for the VA New England Healthcare System which is a multi-state integrated healthcare system comprised of 8 medical centers and 41 community-based outpatient clinics that serves over 260,000 Veterans. Prior to serving VA New England, Lisa was Executive Director of the VA National Center for Ethics in Health Care, Director of Bioethics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and a practicing primary care physician and health services researcher at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. She received an MD and PhD in moral philosophy from Johns Hopkins University and a Master of Science in clinical epidemiology from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
Rodrigo R. Gameiro	Rodrigo R. Gameiro is a physician, lawyer, and public health expert conducting research at MIT’s Laboratory for Computational Physiology. His work focuses on responsible AI in medicine and advancing healthcare equity through innovation and governance.
Vippy Yee	Vippy Yee is the Assistant Dean for Community Based Programs at the MIT PKG Center for Public Service. She holds a BA in Political Science from Dickinson College and an MSc in Sociology from the London School of Economics and Political Science at the University of London. As the Center’s Assistant Dean for Community Based Programs, Vippy is responsible for encouraging and supporting MIT student community engagement, managing immersive community-based programs, helping faculty develop community engaged learning courses/projects, and developing strategy for public interest advising and other PKG initiatives, with a focus on local and national projects. She develops and maintains relationships with community organizations to foster ethical and effective student engagement and serves as an instructor for PKG Center courses. Vippy’s higher education career includes over 15 years of teaching with a focus on racial and social inequality, social mobility, and social movements. Her current and past courses include Social Justice Pathways at MIT and Beyond, Social Problems, Urban Sociology, Sociology of Gender, and the Foundations of Civic and Community Engagement. Vippy draws upon over two decades of civic leadership and service. Prior to her current role at MIT, Vippy was the founding Director of the Center for Social Impact at Penn State Brandywine and served as the Assistant Director of Volunteer Programs at Bryn Mawr College. She has held elected positions in local government on the Rose Valley Borough Council and Wallingford-Swarthmore School District Board, and she has served on the Board of Directors of various non-profit and community agencies including the Lansdowne Economic Development Corporation, Chester Children’s Chorus, and the Helen Kate Furness Library. Through the PKG Center, she strives to help prepare students to become engaged leaders in their communities by providing the context, training and opportunities to develop meaningful connections based on mutual respect and dignity.