The Ethical and Legal Imperative of Infection Prevention and Control: A Framework Grounded in Islamic Bioethics

Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) is central to safeguarding health systems, but in Saudi Arabia it raises critical questions: is IPC an ethical and legal obligation, or merely a professional option? Drawing on the Kingdom’s experiences with MERS-CoV, COVID-19, and the rapid integration of artificial intelligence (AI) under Vision 2030, this article interrogates IPC through the intersecting lenses of statutory law, Islamic bioethics, and global health governance.The analysis identifies three persistent challenges: (1) weak enforcement of the Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL) in health data use, (2) unresolved liability in AI-driven surveillance and decision-making, and (3) ethical tensions in isolation orders, digital contact tracing, and vaccination mandates. Islamic principles of maslahah (public interest), adl (justice), amanah (trust), and darura (necessity) are shown to provide a culturally coherent framework for balancing collective safety with individual rights.The article makes three key contributions. First, it demonstrates how Saudi statutory law operationalizes these ethical commitments but suffers from enforcement gaps. Second, it highlights the underexplored legal risks of AI adoption in IPC, particularly algorithmic bias and liability. Third, it proposes a governance model integrating ethical oversight committees, AI-specific regulation, and inclusive engagement of religious scholars, healthcare professionals, and the public.Actionable recommendations include strengthening PDPL enforcement through independent oversight, embedding Islamic bioethics into IPC training, and institutionalizing transparent, participatory governance. By reframing IPC as a binding obligation rather than optional, the article positions Saudi Arabia to advance ethically grounded, legally robust, and culturally resonant infection prevention aligned with Vision 2030.