Catherine Davies
Director, Digital Healthcare Council
The NHS is embracing digital innovation to improve access and patient care. Discover the digital solutions enabling faster diagnoses, quicker access to specialists and early intervention.
NHS trusts are piloting online specialist assessments, as an innovative way to tackle waiting lists. Patients complete standardised questions online, leading to quicker diagnoses with information reviewed by consultants.
Optimising traditional models and responding faster
Data from Buckinghamshire NHS Trust, where HBSUK’s Virtual Lucy service was deployed, reveals more than 95% of dermatology cases can be managed from the information and photographs provided by patients. Cases are usually reviewed within 72 hours (typical waiting times are at least three months). Only 50% of patients subsequently need a follow-up.
Evergreen Life takes a traditional clinical model, uses digital solutions to make it more efficient and then uses AI to optimise it further. Its workflow system has enabled GP practices to resolve patients’ requests in hours (rather than weeks), improving patient outcomes.
Cutting-edge solutions deliverable at scale
Three years ago, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust managed hospital bed capacity by using pen and paper, while nurses ran up and down several flights of stairs to check bed availability.
The Trust then introduced TeleTracking’s end-to-end electronic bed and capacity management platform – a specialised operational system which centralises patient flow data, automates workflows, and supports improved bed and capacity management. Combining this technology with the right processes ensures the most efficient and effective access, delivery, and transitions of care for patients
While availability of support is key,
services must also be there when needed.
Digital therapies improving access
Accredited online mental health services like Kooth are critical given the UK’s mental health crisis. While availability of support is key, services must also be there when needed. In a recent survey on Kooth, 96% of young people said it was important that they could access the service after school or work; 95% said it was important or very important that there were no long waiting lists.
Identify health decline early and live independently for longer
Lilli is a lifestyle monitoring technology. By monitoring trends and patterns of behaviour, its insights can help to identify health decline before conditions become acute, supporting care professionals to tailor care packages effectively.
Transformational outcomes have been seen in Reading, Medway and Nottingham. Lilli can assist social workers in providing reassurance to friends and family that their loved ones are able to remain at home safely.
