ELAXIR Cards, a new educational resource developed by King’s College London researcher Dr Raquel Iniesta and an international team of researchers, are being used to raise awareness amongst NHS professionals of the real-world risks and benefits associated with the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in patient care.
The ELAXIR project received funding from RAI UK, UKRI and the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre: Maudsley.
The AI Team, part of the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England (NHSE) has selected the ELAXIR Cards to support the NHS AI Ambassador Network, a community of more than 16,000 healthcare professionals dedicated to promoting the safe, responsible and people-centred use of artificial intelligence across the National Health Service (NHS). Through this initiative, the cards will help support NHS workers and their patients to make informed decisions about the use of AI in healthcare by raising awareness of the risks and challenges. On 24th September 2026 there was a dedicated workshop offered to 1,000 ambassadors that will introduce the ELAXIR cards and how they can be used in the NHS.
AI can transform medicine, but it will only do so safely if healthcare professionals fully understand its risks. The ELAXIR Cards were created to promote responsible AI that supports clinical judgement rather than replacing it, ensuring that advances in technology do not come at the expense of human-centred care. By equipping NHS AI Ambassadors with the ELAXIR Cards, we're helping create a culture where conversations about AI ethics become part of everyday healthcare practice.
Dr Raquel IniestaReader in Machine Learning and AI Ethics in Healthcare, IoPPN and AI Ambassador
The ELAXIR Cards are an innovative tool designed to help healthcare professionals, researchers, students and the public to better understand the risks posed by AI in healthcare and make informed decisions about its use. Using realistic scenarios, reflective questions and key AI concepts, the cards encourage discussion of issues such as discrimination against patients from minority ethnic backgrounds, the risk of dehumanising healthcare, the need for transparency from AI developers, public responsibility, and the importance of involving patients in the development of AI technologies.
It comes as NHS England has recently announced a major rollout of AI tools, including a triage function in the NHS app for patients, and access to AI notetaking for clinicians.
Responsible AI in healthcare
The ELAXIR Cards were led by Dr Raquel Iniesta, Reader in Machine Learning and AI Ethics in Healthcare at Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience King’s College London. Over the past 14 years, her research has focused on responsible AI in healthcare. She is also an AI Ambassador
The project was developed by an international team of researchers from the United Kingdom, the United States, Kenya, Jamaica and Spain.
