NHS Digital Transformation: How Technology Is Reshaping Health and Care

Empowered patients and smarter self-care

Pritesh Mistry, Digital Fellow at the King’s Fund, works in policy exploring how digital tools can improve health and care. He points first to the rapid evolution of patient-facing technologies. He says:

“Since the pandemic, the different technologies of the NHS app, the website and access to their medical records allow people to be more knowledgeable and informed about their symptoms, possible side-effects of medication and more. This can result in better self-care or a more informed discussion with their doctor because they’re more confident.”

This shift reflects a broader rebalancing of the relationship between patients and the system. Digital access to records, appointments and advice is enabling people to take a more active role in managing their health, particularly when supported by data from wearables and home monitoring devices. Pritesh highlights the growing use of technologies such as continuous glucose monitoring for people with diabetes, allowing blood sugar levels to be tracked in real time and linked to diet, exercise and insulin use. He adds,

It’s about changing the dynamics from the NHS being in control to the person being in control and knowing what’s happening with their health. Patients are more confident in using the tech and find it empowering. This higher level of knowledge brings clinical teams and patients together

For clinicians, this shift has the potential to improve consultations, support shared decision-making and enable more proactive management of long-term conditions.

Healthcare at home

One of the most significant developments within NHS digital transformation has been the rapid expansion of care delivered beyond the hospital estate. In January, Steve Barclay, then Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, set out a firm commitment to virtual wards, stating: “We will increase the rollout of our high-tech virtual wards, which will support patients while they recuperate at home under review by a clinical team. We now have a growing base of evidence that virtual wards are a safe and effective alternative to bedded care, so our ambition is for up to 50,000 people a month to be supported away from hospital wards by 2023/24.”

Virtual wards free up acute beds for the most urgent cases, but they also offer qualitative benefits for patients. Routine monitoring such as blood pressure checks, can be carried out at home, alongside ongoing management of long-term conditions. Pritesh argues that this model can strengthen continuity of care, “Patients with long-term conditions can have regular remote check-ups rather than an appointment every six months. These short virtual check-ins mean clinicians can know that people are feeling ok and, crucially, looked after.”

There are already strong examples across the system. In Wolverhampton, lessons learned from a Covid virtual ward were used to launch an acute respiratory infection (ARI) virtual ward in July 2022, supporting up to 120 people with respiratory conditions at home. Other successful models are operating in Cheshire, Leeds, Hull and Kent. In Leeds alone, more than 21,500 bed days had been saved by March 2023 since the pilot virtual ward launched in November 2019. As Pritesh said, beyond monitoring, immersive technologies are also emerging: “Some areas are now testing out how to bring support into people’s homes, giving them VR systems to do their exercises at home when it’s convenient for them.”

The AI Revolution in Clinical Care

Artificial intelligence (AI) is another pillar of NHS digital transformation, particularly in diagnostics, imaging and operational planning. AI systems are already proving highly effective at interpreting medical imaging, reducing reporting backlogs and freeing up clinician time in departments facing workforce shortages. Addenbrooke’s Hospital, for example, became the first hospital in the world to use Microsoft’s InnerEye system for processing cancer scans.

Speaking to the Cambridge Independent, oncologist Dr Raj Jena described the impact of the collaboration between Addenbrooke’s, University of Cambridge and Microsoft: “My team at Addenbrooke’s Hospital and the University of Cambridge have been collaborating with Microsoft Research to train computers to perform this task more quickly.” The project took eight years, but the results have been transformative,

“The research has shown that a computer can perform in just a few minutes what would normally take me several hours to do. This is important because it means we can start a patient on life-saving radiotherapy much more quickly and we know that the sooner we can start treatment, the better the chances for the patients.”

Beyond imaging, Pritesh points to robotic surgery as a further step change: “Robotic surgery may completely change how long you need to be in care by reducing trauma and rehab and, as a result, how many days you need to spend in hospital.” AI is also being explored to optimise theatre utilisation, analysing complex combinations of operating patterns, patient data and staff availability to unlock additional capacity. Even front-of-house functions are evolving, with robot receptionists being trialled to automate booking processes and reduce administrative burden.

Trust, Exclusion and The Human Factors of Transformation

Despite the promise of digital innovation, significant challenges remain. Chief among them are digital exclusion, workforce engagement and public trust in data use. Research published by The King’s Fund in March highlights the dynamic nature of digital exclusion. Access alone does not guarantee inclusion. “Our research shows that digital exclusion is dynamic; once people are shown how to use the tech or given access, it’s not necessarily a solved problem as their health could change. Their eyesight might deteriorate or they might not be able to use their fingers,” says Pritesh.

He also stresses the importance of choice: “some people don’t feel reassured when they have an online consultation, yet other people I’ve spoken to feel positive – it’s convenient and they got the care they needed. We need to make sure staff have the skills and people have a choice between a traditional or a tech offering.” Alongside inclusion, trust in how patient data is used remains critical. As systems become more interconnected, concerns around privacy, cyber security and ransomware attacks continue to grow, requiring sustained investment in digital resilience. Pritesh also points to the King’s Fund research Interoperability is more than technology, which highlights the need to engage staff meaningfully in digital change.

“There’s some staff who are reluctant to use technology, who need support to build confidence and skills. Then there’s others who are frustrated with technology that doesn’t meet their needs, works poorly and feels imposed upon them,” he explains. “Prioritising staff engagement by listening to and addressing their frustrations, but also creating empowered champions to support peers, identify technology needs and integrate technology into updated workflows can help to make progress in transforming services so staff and patients can benefit from technology,” he adds.

Designing Digital-First Hospitals for the Future

Looking ahead, digital transformation is also shaping how hospitals are designed and configured.

Roberta Fuller, Head of Hospital Reconfiguration at Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, approaches the question of hospital design with technology at the forefront. She points to Scandinavian healthcare systems as early adopters of digitally enabled hospitals that improve efficiency, experience and outcomes. Essential features include digital wayfinding, integrated workflows, patient onboarding systems, tech-enabled in-room entertainment and advanced patient monitoring – alongside innovations such as virtual 3D modelling for estate planning.

At St. Olav’s University Hospital in Trondheim, technology has delivered measurable operational benefits. A navigation service for hospital porters, using smartphone tracking, has saved an estimated two minutes per work order – equating to the workload of five full-time employees across 700 daily tasks. Internationally, Royal Adelaide Hospital offers another example. Working with DNV Imatis, the hospital has integrated telecoms, clinical applications, patient flow systems, self-check-in, digital signage, automated guided vehicles, nurse call systems and alarms into a single, unified digital platform.