In the latest Priorities and Operational Planning Guidance 2024/25, NHS England has included objectives for the digital maturity of all NHS systems to drive its three main goals:
- Recovering core services and productivity
- Making progress in delivering the key ambitions in the Long Term Plan
- Continue to transform the NHS for the future
Some of the main objectives for the digital maturity of all NHS systems are:
- All NHS systems are to “continue to deliver the commitments set out in the strategic plans for the digitisation of services to support integration and service transformation: A plan for digital health and social care and Data Saves Lives.”
- All NHS systems are to “continue to support the levelling up of provider digital maturity across all sectors, with a focus on deploying and upgrading electronic patient record systems in line with the What Good Looks Like framework.” This is to “ensure plans are improving adherence to standards for well led digital leadership and will deliver smart foundation for basic digital infrastructure”.
- NHS systems are to “support and prioritise the implementation of the Federated Data Platform (FDP) to support elective recovery, care co-ordination (including optimising discharge), population health management and vaccination programmes.”
Reactions from the experts
Editor of Building Better Healthcare, Sophie Bullimore, asked experts in digital healthcare to share their opinion on the Guidance and the objectives laid out for the digitisation of the NHS.
Rachael Fox, Executive VP of the EMEA division of Altera Digital Health, said: “I fully support the recently published NHS England Operational Planning Guidance and its emphasis on strong digital foundations being essential for transformation. They're vital for enabling access to timely healthcare, increasing productivity and improving quality. Altera is closely aligned with its overarching priority for healthcare providers to digitise services, integrate and transform by levelling up digital maturity.”
Paul McGinness, CEO of Lenus Health, said: “At Lenus Health, we have identified that much of the pressure at the hospital front door is driven by undiagnosed patients with decompensated disease. The use of digital pathway tools is evidenced to significantly reduce time to diagnosis and treatment, and we welcome the continued focus on diagnostic resources outside of secondary care settings. However, it is essential that these resources are coordinated in end-to-end pathways in order to reduce the impact on patients navigating the system and to maximise the benefit.”
Technological advancements like Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are pivotal in meeting these objectives
Krishna Thakur, CEO and founder of Capri Healthcare, said: [The guidance] sets clear objectives to enhance healthcare accessibility, quality, and efficiency, with a strong emphasis on sustainable practices and the transformation of care delivery. This focus underscores the necessity for continuous innovation in adapting to evolving healthcare needs and ensuring system sustainability.”
“Technological advancements like Robotic Process Automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are pivotal in meeting these objectives," Thakur continues. "RPA streamlines essential yet time-consuming tasks such as data entry, billing, and scheduling, freeing healthcare professionals to concentrate more on patient care. AI enhances these capabilities further, improving diagnostics and personalised medicine by analysing extensive datasets to better detect diseases and create tailored treatment plans."
“The combination of AI and RPA can significantly reduce errors and enhance patient satisfaction through more streamlined and personalised care processes. Ongoing innovation, and integrating such technologies is crucial for the NHS to meet its strategic goals effectively and maintain high standards of efficient services,” Thakur concluded.
The Guidance also refers to the £3.4bn of new investment in data and technology for the NHS from 2025/26 onwards
Nick Wilson CEO of System C, said: “Strong digital foundations are essential for transformation, supporting patient outcomes and experience, alongside quality and productivity of service."
Wilson added: "The 2024/25 priorities and operational guidance identifies that technology is an enabler, but it will not achieve digital maturity on its own and needs to complement the NHS Long Term Plan. Technology must be supported by people, process, and cultural change to have the desired effect. It is people that will drive change throughout an organisation and adopt new ways of working, alongside this, processes need to be reformed to make a shift to preventative measures.”
“The guidance rightly focuses on productivity but this should be considered as a whole-system issue, and in order to provide a noticeable step change, further investment in technology is required. These investments should support an ICS-wide view and consider how it can deliver integrated care across all health and social care settings in order to understand the person as a whole,” Wilson continued.
With ever-growing complex needs of long-term conditions, an ageing population, and lifestyle-related diseases battling against a growing backlog, lack of capacity, escalating costs and an exhausted workforce, there are challenging decisions ahead. However, the convergence of care and use of technological advances will help prevent admissions, speed up processes, and improve the well-being of citizens. This can truly transform the way we work,” Wilson concluded.
By using the right automated digital triage solutions, we can drastically improve patient access and reduce wait times for community services to help tackle current backlogs.
Carmelo Insalaco, CEO of Rapid Health, said: “In reviewing the NHS operational planning guidance for 2024/25, it's encouraging to see a strong emphasis on digital innovation to enhance patient access and efficiency within GP services. The guidance rightly points towards leveraging digital tools and cloud-based solutions to manage patient interactions more efficiently and help alleviate pressures on staff by offering alternative pathways for patient care.”
“By using the right automated digital triage solutions, we can drastically improve patient access and reduce wait times for community services to help tackle current backlogs. Forthcoming real-world evaluations indicate that smart systems like Rapid Health’s significantly contribute to these objectives by enabling better management of care pathways. These solutions act as the digital front door that offer no touch booking for patients and navigate them to the appropriate pathway and appointment based on their symptoms' urgency. Digital solutions can ensure that ~15% of patients, who would typically be sent to A&E, are directed to the appropriately primary care settings which in turn, supports the NHS's goal of reducing unnecessary hospital visits, alleviating pressure on urgent care staff,” Insalaco concluded.
So, is the future of the NHS digital?
The guidance also refers to the £3.4bn of new investment in data and technology for the NHS from 2025/26 onwards, which was announced in the government’s Spring Budget.
NHS England stated in the Guidance that the investment “will allow us to roll out technology and digital services to improve access, waiting times and outcomes”, and described the investment as “transformational”, for both patients and NHS staff.
The NHS has recognised technology can help the healthcare system improve services including diagnosis and treatment
Further, the NHS has been undergoing a digital transformation for a number of years.
Significantly, following the merger of NHS Digital and NHS England on February 1 2023, NHS England became responsible for “designing and operating national data infrastructure and digital systems.”
The NHS has recognised technology can help the healthcare system improve services including diagnosis and treatment as well as enable NHS staff to work in more efficient ways.
However, some experts have recognised that this is easier said than done and have identified some pitfalls.
