Health Law, Health Policy, Digital Health, and Innovation
In the past few years, the health sector has gone through a rapid transformation focusing on conceptual change in interaction between patients, healthcare professionals, medical institutions, and the society at large. The said changes have a direct effect on the challenges within regulatory development, medical ethics and health policy developments, as well as digital health. Thus, the goal of the research group on health law, policy, and innovation is to identify the current and prospective issues in connection with health law and policy in cooperation with the sector, public administration and municipal institutions, national and international human rights, health law and patient right organizations, bodies representing healthcare professionals, experts, researchers, as well as academics.
The research group on health law, policy, digital health, and innovation conducts research in various health-related disciplines looking at the topical rights-related issues from patient and doctor rights to various digital health-related matters, such as regulation within telemedicine and use of artificial intelligence and digital technologies in diagnostics and treatment.
In the field of health law, the research group conducts research in various health-related disciplines and issues affecting the intersection of law and medicine/ biomedicine. In this research, the research group looks at issues related to the exercising human rights in the field of medical treatment and the state’s obligations in this regard, as well as issues related to medical ethics and the rights and obligations of patients and doctors, as well as issues related to invoking liability in the health sector.
In the field of health policy, the research group conducts research related to both health policy-making in order to create a comprehensive, accessible and patient-oriented healthcare and supportive policies promoting and improving overall public health, as well as impact assessment of various health policy initiatives and policies or policy implementation matters.
In the field of digital health and innovation, the research group conducts research leveraging the advantages and opportunities of the current technological progress, how to introduce new technologies and approaches to improve the productivity and efficiency in the work of health professionals, to promote the participation and interest of the population in maintaining and improving their health, and to implement all this in accordance with the correct legal framework. In this research, the research group’s focus is also on sociological and anthropological issues as to how innovations in medicine, state-of-art technologies, legal framework and policy reforms can promote access to health, thus creating a more inclusive health prevention and healthcare system and improving the health of population that has been marginalized, discriminated for various reasons or ‘excluded from society’, and to create more equality in terms of health.
Main Research Directions
Exercise of human rights in medical treatment and state obligations
Health law and the legal conflict situations identified therein are related to human rights to a large extent. Namely, protection of human dignity and physical and mental integrity, the right to life, the right to equal treatment, the right to private life, the right to information, etc. In this research, it is important to promote the development of legal thought in matters of law enforcement in Latvia by studying the recommendations of the Council of Europe and the European Union and the findings contained in case law in the context of legal conflict situations identified in Latvia and the effective legislation. Researching the issues of human rights in medical treatment and the state’s obligations in this regard could play a significant role in the development of the rights and obligations of both patients and healthcare professionals in Latvia.
Rights and obligations of patients and healthcare professionals
Both in Latvia and in the world, healthcare issues face insufficient awareness about the issues of interpreting the statutory rights and obligations of patients and healthcare professionals. Also, the problems in healthcare are affected by insufficient quality of healthcare potentially posing a threat to the interests of the patient’s right to health protection, including causing physical or moral harm. Thus, in order to promote correct and well-rounded communication with the patient and facilitate the patient’s involvement in healthcare, and to promote the matters of patient’s dignity, self-determination, privacy, and other issues that are relevant in the field of health protection, it is essential to study conflict situations of a legal nature affecting exercising the rights and obligations of patients and healthcare professionals.
Challenges in invoking administrative and criminal liability for healthcare violations
Healthcare professionals and medical institutions may be subject to administrative liability for the statutory procedures for provision of healthcare, while criminal liability may be invoked for committing a criminal offence in the field of healthcare. Over the past few years, in the aforementioned regard, issues have arisen affecting not only invoking administrative and criminal liability for healthcare professionals and medical institutions, but also, potentially, patients for violence against healthcare professionals. Therefore, we need to focus on research in this matter in order to create awareness and development of legal thought about liability and its consequences in case of non-compliance with standards of behaviour.
Liability challenges in the context of the use of state-of-art technologies in healthcare
How does the development of the state-of-art technologies (artificial intelligence, robotics, precision medicine) affect the liability issues of healthcare professionals, medical institutions, technology manufacturers, and suppliers in terms of safeguarding patients’ rights and safety standards? What legal, ethical, and political mechanisms are required to address issues related to ethical and lawful use of medical technology in healthcare institutions?
Regulatory and policy-making challenges in the area of telemedicine
Telemedicine involves the use of various information and communication technologies in healthcare - various types of remote consultations with other specialists, patients, and medical panels, as well as remote monitoring of patients, which can be implemented both in the institutions and in the society at large. The wide spectrum of telemedicine issues is directly linked to legal and policy-making challenges in the development and integration of telemedicine regulation into the existing healthcare system.
Challenges of using health data in research and innovation development
The use of secondary data and data-based decision-making, both in policy making and implementation, is a generally accepted good practice these days, while innovations in the field of health, from clinical research in the field of pharmaceuticals, innovative treatment approaches to tools for improving the quality of life and well-being of patients, cannot be developed and approved in the absence of data. In order to ensure that health data may be used for these purposes, in accordance with the existing legal practice in the European Union and Latvia, the legal and ethical challenges of the use of health data for the research and treatment purposes must be addressed, as well as guidelines and methodological support for correct and appropriate national and international regulation, human rights must be developed – use of primary and secondary health data.
Improving patient safety and reporting systems in healthcare institutions
Nowadays, the field of health is moving towards the concept of ‘value-based healthcare’ where more and more importance shall be assigned to the assessment of the quality and safety of healthcare, and likewise the patient’s assessment of both the patient’s experience in the healthcare institution and the impact of the received healthcare on the patient’s quality of life and well-being have an increasing effect. Current research questions in this field are primarily related to issues of patient safety and treatment quality, as well as concept development, research and analysis of results in a non-identifying internal patient safety reporting-learning system.
Legal challenges in the employment relations with healthcare professionals
The work of healthcare professionals requires great sense of responsibility and precision, because these professionals are the ones providing for the health and preservation of life of people. It is therefore very important that these relations are both regulated and transparent. Today, healthcare problems both in Latvia and globally are affected by the lack of human resources, thus limiting the opportunities for receiving healthcare services, so this issue requires particular attention. Also, the work of healthcare professionals is particularly difficult and emotionally overwhelming. During the past few years, conflict situations of a legal nature, such as mobbing and bossing in medical institutions against healthcare professionals have been observed in Latvia. Mobbing and bossing can affect the physical and mental health of healthcare professionals, as well as work efficiency and the quality of medical treatment provided. Mobbing and bossing in the Latvian medical sector are issues that have been little researched and require attention in the development of legal thought.
Group members
Academic Staff, Faculty of Social Sciences
Lead Researcher, Social Sciences Research Centre
Head of the research group PhD Karina Palkova is associate professor and the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences of Rīga Stradiņš University, senior researcher, lecturer, as well as sworn attorney. Expert with the Latvian Council of Science. In 2020, she defended her doctoral thesis ‘Issues in legal relations between minor patients and healthcare professionals in the treatment process’. For several years, she has been responsible for implementation of study process in the field of medical law for both students of social sciences and medical practitioners. Member of international scientific organizations, such as the European Association of Health Law, World Association for Medical Law, and the European Association for Artificial Intelligence.
PhD Karina Palkova is an author of several scientific publications in the field of medical law, as well as co-author of legal literature in the field of medical law. She is the Scientific Editor of the Scientific Journal Socrates (ISSN 2256-0548) of the Faculty of Social Sciences.
Research interests: rights and obligations of healthcare professionals, healthcare technologies and their regulation, as well as the rights of minor patients
PhD Laura Šāberte is a lawyer, lecturer, and researcher within the medical law. In 2024, she defended her doctoral thesis ‘The rights of a patient and a doctor to express their religious beliefs in medical treatment’. For several years, she has been responsible for implementation of study process in the field of medical law for both students of social sciences and medical practitioners. Practical work experience in the field of medical law since 2014. She has worked as a lawyer for the National Health Service and LLC Rīga East Clinical University Hospital. Currently, she is the Head of the Legal Department of the Health Inspectorate. Member of the European Association of Health Law.
PhD Laura Šāberte is an author of several scientific publications in the field of medical law, as well as co-author of legal literature in the field of medical law.
Research interests: human rights in healthcare and the right to health protection, state obligations as to the right to health protection.
Dr. iur. Aldis Lieljuksis is associate professor at Rīga Stradiņš University, as well as a sworn attorney. Expert with the Latvian Council of Science.
Dr. iur. Aldis Lieljuksis is an author of several scientific publications in the areas of health law and criminal law. Co-author of the Latvian National Encyclopedia, author of Chapter 11 Liability of Medical Practitioners in the book Medical Law, published in 2015, commentary to Chapter 11 Special Investigative Activities of the Criminal Proceedings, published in 2019, monograph Legal and Practical Issues in Operational Activities, published in 2021, as well as the author of scientific articles and publications on medical law and legal issues in the area of competence of law enforcement authorities.
Research interests: issues of criminal liability in the area of medical law.
Academic Staff, Faculty of Social Sciences
Academic Staff, Social Sciences Research Centre
PhD Ieva Bikava is a lecturer and researcher in the matters of digital health and health policy. In 2023, she defended her doctoral thesis Latvia’s health policy reform between 1990 and 2020 from the perspective of historical institutionalism. More than 20 years experience in IT working as business and system analyst. Participated as an analyst in the development of e-government and e-services solutions, information systems covering different needs of state and municipal authorities. Since 2018, she specializes in the development of healthcare solutions. Since 2022, senior business analyst developing, implementing and improving the new Latvian cancer patient register.
PhD Ieva Bikava is an author of several scientific publications in the fields of digital health and policy.
Research interests: implementation of digital healthcare solutions for streamlining and improving the healthcare processes, as well as health data analysis for healthcare quality measurement and improvement, and progress towards a value-based healthcare system.
PhD Dace Tarasova is a lawyer, a lecturer at Rīga Stradiņš University, Head of the Medical Treatment Risk Fund Division in the Health Inspectorate. In 2024, she defended her doctoral thesis ‘Legal framework for termination of employment relations and related problems in the Republic of Latvia’, with in-depth research of the social function in the field of employment, especially in the context of the termination of employment relations. Her research activity covers various labour rights forming also an integral part of medical law, namely, the employment relations between healthcare professionals and medical institutions. She has paid special attention to the establishment of employment relations, possible manifestations of mobbing in employment relations.
PhD Dace Tarasova is an author of several scientific publications in the areas of labour law and health law.
Research interests: labour law, regulation of the operation of the medical treatment risk fund.
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