The Practice of Broad Informed Consent in the UK "Our Future Health" Project and Its Implications for China

The rapid advancements in big data and artificial intelligence have posed challenges to the traditional model of specific informed consent. This paper examines the practices and governance framework of the UK "Our Future Health" project, which operates under a broad consent model. The project has garnered a relatively high level of public trust, largely due to its well-established broad informed consent procedures, transparent information disclosure, extensive public engagement, and robust governance structures and institutional framework. However, the paper also scrutinizes the controversies it has faced, such as potential misleading publicity, inequalities in the recruitment process, inadequate risk disclosure, and deficiencies in the withdrawal mechanism. Drawing on China's national context, the paper suggests establishing and clarifying the basis for the legality of broad informed consent, refining the broad informed consent process, strengthening data governance system, improving transparency, and encouraging public participation.