NHS Confederation welcomes AI-assisted tool that can boost NHS productivity

Responding to the announcement by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology that artificial intelligence (AI) is being piloted to help patients out of hospital quicker and free up NHS staff’s time, Matthew Taylor, chief executive at the NHS Confederation, said:

“We welcome this announcement which shows how AI can boost efficiency and help NHS staff discharge patients quickly.

“When rolled out effectively, AI has great potential to improve NHS productivity by helping to reduce waiting lists.

“It is positive that through this pilot project, the AI-assisted tool will reduce the administrative burden on doctors and capture critical information by helping them draft discharge documents faster.

“But for AI tools to work well, sufficient time is needed to obtain consent and verify accuracy as the health worker remains responsible for both the precision of the information and patient confidentiality. This will ensure high quality documents are produced and patient trust is maintained.”