Health workforce, AI, and transparency challenges at centre of discussions at 16th International Conference on Medical Regulation

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros: “The health workforce is the backbone of any health system”

Thursday, 4th September 2025: On the second day of the 16th International conference on Medical Regulation, at the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road, Dublin 4, over 400 international delegates heard urgent calls to strengthen the global health workforce, improve transparency in healthcare, and prepare for the impact of artificial intelligence.

Speaking at the opening of the first official day of the conference, Joan Simeon, Chair of IAMRA and CEO of the Medical Council of Zealand, added,

“As regulators, our foremost responsibility is to ensure that every patient, everywhere, receives care from a safe, competent medical workforce.

“The 16th International Conference on Medical Regulation is an opportunity for regulators from around the world to share knowledge and confront challenges together. As we look to the future, we are proud to be at the centre of a global discussion on medical regulation, ensuring that healthcare serves patients, communities, and a safer world.”

Highlights from Thursday’s conference included:

1. “We must invest in regulators”: In a video address to conference delegates, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director General, World Health Organisation emphasised the important role of medical regulation, not only for patient safety but for enabling the workforce to meet broader health system goals. Echoing the opening conference message, Dr Tedros emphasised that “The health workforce is the backbone of any health system”, outlining how health systems today must confront growing emergencies, rising displacement of health workers, and technological change

2. Leo Varadkar, former Taoiseach and former Minister for Health, in a keynote address, urged regulators to be cognisant of the following issues facing medical regulation today.

• Stronger focus on duty of candour and open disclosure, as lack of transparency remains a major problem
• Urgent work must be done to address gender bias in medical education, which is highly prevalent
• AI-assisted doctors will need proper governance and new regulation to ensure safe integration into healthcare

3. Artificial Intelligence (AI) featured heavily in today’s sessions, with the Medical Council indicating it will soon publish a position statement on AI. The position statement will focus on patient safety and wellbeing, as well as professional guidance for doctors.

Jantze Cotter, Executive Director of Regulatory Policy, Standards and Research at the Medical Council revealed that the position statement would be forthcoming later in 2025.

Speaking at the conference on Thursday, Ms Cotter said,

“The Medical Council will soon set out key considerations in establishing our position on AI in medicine in Ireland.

“The pace of AI development is accelerating at unprecedented rates in modern society, presenting novel opportunities and challenges. Advancements in AI hold great potential for the medical field but also introduce significant ethical, legal, regulatory and professional challenges for doctors integrating AI into their practice. Doctors must ensure that their use of AI augments, rather than replaces their clinical decision making.”

From amplifying patient perspectives on the complaints process, to utilising digital tools, and advancing standards in medical education and training, today’s conference programme consistently highlighted its central theme of people-focused regulation for a safer global community.

Other keynote speakers from Thursday included:

• Dr Rachelle Love, Chair of the Medical Council of New Zealand, who spoke about the critical role of regulators in supporting achievement of health equity and setting and maintaining standards for health practitioners to ensure all patients receive culturally safe care
• Tiberius Pereira, Chair of Patients for Patient Safety (Ireland) who discussed what really matters for the patient community in the work of regulators

Keynote speakers still to come on the conference programme (Friday 5th and Saturday 6th September):

• Professor Raymond Chua, CEO Health Sciences Authority, Singapore and Deputy Director-General Health, Regulation, Ministry of Health Singapore who will discuss transforming regulations in tomorrow’s era of digital and personalised healthcare
• Professor Ivy Bourgeault, University of Ottawa, who will discuss innovative approaches to health workforce shortages
• Dr Austin O’Carroll, a General Practitioner in inner-city Dublin, Ireland, who has focused his career on improving access for communities affected by marginalization or deprivation to quality primary healthcare. Dr O’Carroll will look into broadening access to medical education & training to people from disadvantaged groups
• Professor Dame Carrie MacEwen, Chair of the General Medical Council (UK) who will reflect on the importance of compassionate leadership in medical regulation

The 16th International Conference on Medical Regulation will be of interest to those involved in medical regulation and regulation of other health professions; medical education across the continuum, including primary medical education, post graduate medical training, and continuing professional development; assessment and remediation; healthcare policy and medical workforce planning.

The conference centres on the theme of ‘People-focused regulation for a safer global community’. It will feature Ireland-based and international experts in medical regulation, research, public safety, and healthcare. Visit the conference website here.