NHS App to Use AI Patient Triage Tool to Direct Patients to Appropriate Services by 2028

NHS app to use AI to determine which service best for patients

Artificial intelligence will be used on the NHS app to determine which service is most appropriate for patients in England, the health service has announced. A new triage tool will ask patients a series of questions, and will use the responses to direct them to a GP appointment, pharmacy, A&E, community service or offer self-care advice. NHS England said the update would reach more than 200,000 patients in the next 12 months and be available to all app users by April 2028 as part of a "major overhaul" of its technology. The rollout has been largely welcomed, but some health bodies urged the NHS to prioritise patient safety, confidentiality and inclusion as it grows more reliant on AI. An initial trial of the tool at Wealden Ridge Medical Partnership in Sussex saw a 29% reduction in the number of people queuing on the phone for an appointment. Dr Ragu Rajan, who works at the practice, said integrating the tool "means our patients can tell us what they need, when they need it, and be directed to the right care first time. "It hasn't replaced our judgement - it's given us back the time to use it." Sir Jim Mackey, chief executive of NHS England, said the tool would "help get patients to the best service for their needs first time... so that clinicians can make sure those most in need of a GP appointment can get one sooner". It comes as part of a £10bn investment, allocated by the government in 2025, to overhaul the NHS's technology, digital and data systems. There will also be an England-wide rollout of AI tools that record conversations between patients and NHS staff to generate real-time transcriptions and clinical summaries. It will start with hospital appointments not requiring an overnight stay at four NHS trusts in and around London - St George's, Epsom and St Helier, Croydon, and Kingston and Richmond. Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust in Liverpool and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust are also expanding their AI notetaking programmes. A trial led by Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children and carried out across nine NHS sites in London found NHS staff spent almost 25% more of their time interacting with patients when using the notetaking technology. The Royal College of Nursing's chief nursing officer, Prof Lynn Woolsey, said the rollout could mark "an important step in upgrading technology in the NHS" and "ease the administrative burden on nursing staff". But she also emphasised that patient safety and confidentiality must be at the "heart of any AI triage system, with a guarantee that a health professional will be the one making decisions at key points in that process". Pritesh Mistry, fellow at the King's Fund think-tank, said the announcement "could help turbo-charge improvements in how [the] NHS uses modern technology to deliver better care for patients". "People should find it easier to have support at the right time and in a way that best suits them, digitally or physically," she added. "And this means the NHS will need to keep a strong focus on ensuring that people are not digitally excluded as clinical services become increasingly reliant on technology." Conservative shadow health secretary Stuart Andrew said: "Any innovation that improves patient care and helps the NHS work more effectively should be welcomed. But new technology must be introduced with a fully-funded plan that delivers value for taxpayers."

NHS to use AI on its app to direct patients to appropriate services

Update in England expected to reach about 200,000 patients over the next year as part of £10bn package to overhaul NHS systems The NHS will begin using AI on its app to direct patients to the appropriate services, it has been announced. The tool will be used to triage patients and to ascertain if they should be allocated a GP appointment. Some may be advised to attend a pharmacy or their local A&E department instead, depending on the severity of their condition. The update is expected to reach 200,000 patients over the next year and be available to all users by April 2028. Ending the so-called 8am scramble for same-day GP appointments was a central Labour manifesto promise before its 2024 election victory. The government said a trial at Wealden Ridge Medical Partnership, which operates surgeries across Sussex, had led to a 29% fall in the number of patients queueing for a GP appointment on its phone lines. The rollout is part of a £10bn government funding package designed to overhaul technology and data systems within the health service to improve efficiency. This is also expected to include the use of AI to record patient consultations, in an attempt to reduce note taking time. A trial led by Great Ormond Street hospital across nine sites in London found staff spent 25% more time interacting with patients when using the tool, officials said. The health secretary, James Murray, said he was "certain" that new technological advances would "get patients to the right care faster, free our brilliant clinicians from mountains of paperwork, and help drive down waiting times". However, health leaders said there was a need for a broader long-term strategy about the use of AI across the NHS. They expressed concerns that there was limited evidence about the productivity improvements it could offer. They also said they were worried that patient privacy could be compromised, and that those who were less confident using technology could be disadvantaged. Lynn Woolsey, chief nursing officer at the Royal College of Nursing, said the app rollout could be "an important step in upgrading technology in the NHS" but added: "There are also warnings to heed, with growing concerns about overstated, overly optimistic assessments of the productivity benefits from AI. "We cannot have situations where it increases bureaucracy through the need to correct flawed or inaccurate work. "Patients must be reassured that any new systems handling their information, such as ambient voice technology, are accurate and properly protect confidentiality." Tim Horton, the deputy director of policy at the Health Foundation, said the announcement was a "positive recognition of the sustained investment needed to transform the NHS into a 21st-century service" but said it was "critical that these plans are part of a broader blueprint for reshaping how care is delivered". He added: "The missing piece in the transformation puzzle is a broader long-term strategy for guiding the use of AI across the health system, where important questions remain about the approaches and safeguards needed, and how more organisations can be supported to benefit from AI. Without this, the NHS risks piecemeal adoption of AI, struggling to achieve benefits at scale." Ciarán Devane, the chief executive of the NHS Alliance, said the the key issue was how the £10bn investment would translate into practical support and funding for NHS leaders to deliver and expand programmes at a local level. "There should be a general principle of maximising the discretion of local leaders to invest in the technologies and solutions that make most sense for their local populations and communities," he continued. "Heath leaders need clarity too on which elements will be mandatory for adoption and what expectations will be placed on organisations. "It is vital that this funding is not whittled away as we have seen all-too-often in the past when the squeeze for savings has landed on NHS capital budgets. That would be a very damaging, false economy." Pritesh Mistry, a fellow at the healthcare charity The King's Fund, said: "For patients, the real test will be whether these investments make care feel more joined up, more convenient and more empowering. "People should find it easier to have support at the right time and in a way that best suits them, digitally or physically. And this means the NHS will need to keep a strong focus on ensuring that people are not digitally excluded as clinical services become increasingly reliant on technology."