JMIR Publications’ Journal of Participatory Medicine invites submissions on participatory artificial intelligence for health

(Toronto, January 20, 2026) JMIR Publications invites submissions to a new section titled “Participatory Artificial Intelligence for Health” in its open access journal Journal of Participatory Medicine. The premier, peer-reviewed journal is indexed in Sherpa Romeo, DOAJ, PubMed, PubMed Central, Scopus, and EBSCO.

Unprecedented advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are poised to transform every dimension of health and care, reshaping how people access information, make decisions, and collaborate to improve outcomes. While current efforts often focus on AI use by health professionals to gain efficiencies and reduce costs, there has been less attention to participatory approaches: how patients, caregivers, the public, clinicians, researchers, and other stakeholders can actively use, shape, and cocreate AI in ways that improve health, strengthen relationships, and foster trust. As costs and complexities rise, collaborative and consumer-driven uses of AI are set to accelerate.

This new e-collection will explore the use, co-design, and impact of AI in health from the perspectives of all stakeholders—patients, the public, caregivers, clinicians, and researchers—working together to design AI that is effective, equitable, and human-centered.

The internet has democratized health information and empowered people to take a more active role in their care; participatory AI promises to extend these opportunities for self-care, shared decision-making, and collaborative problem-solving. Yet, the dawn of AI brings new risks. To ensure that AI serves human needs, all stakeholders must be meaningfully involved at every stage of development—from idea generation to evaluation—so tools align with real-world priorities and respect privacy, security, and equity.

We welcome original research, reviews, viewpoints, and rigorous case studies that address opportunities, challenges, and gaps in the participatory use of AI in health. We especially encourage articles coauthored by diverse stakeholders, such as patient advocates, clinicians, developers, and policymakers.

Submissions to this call for papers may explore, but are not limited to, the following topics:

Research on the experience, value, and impact of participatory AI tools in health

• How different stakeholders—including patients, caregivers, clinicians, and the public—use generative AI (eg, ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini) to learn about health, understand data, make care decisions, or change behavior

• Perspectives on AI chatbots, virtual assistants, wearables, dashboards, virtual reality, and other tools in answering questions, assessing symptoms, or facilitating communication

• How AI-powered devices and applications that collect and analyze health data influence behavior, decisions, and outcomes

Co-production and co-design of AI tools

• Involving people with lived experience, clinicians, researchers, and technologists in the design, development, or deployment of AI applications

• Public and stakeholder partnership in AI research, from priority-setting to evaluation

• Democratic deliberation on privacy, ethics, bias, governance, and responsible use of personal health data

Research on the clinical use of AI tools that interact directly with people

• Exploring stakeholder perspectives on clinician-driven AI tools directed at patients, caregivers, or communities (eg, AI-generated responses to patient messages)

• Understanding how participatory input can improve the usability, accuracy, and acceptability of clinical AI tools

To learn more please visit the webpage.

About JMIR Publications

JMIR Publications is a leading open access publisher of digital health research and a champion of open science. With a focus on author advocacy and research amplification, JMIR Publications partners with researchers to advance their careers and maximize the impact of their work. As a technology organization with publishing at its core, we provide innovative tools and resources that go beyond traditional publishing, supporting researchers at every step of the dissemination process. Our portfolio features a range of peer-reviewed journals, including the renowned Journal of Medical Internet Research.

Media Contact:

Dennis O’Brien, Vice President, Communications & Partnerships

JMIR Publications

communications@jmir.org

+1 416-583-2040

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