Trusts in the Humber region have been involved in an NHS AI trial that is displaying how the use of the technology could help save and money across the NHS. The Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and the Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust have both been involved in the innovative trial.
A pilot of Microsoft 365 Copilot, Microsoft’s AI-powered productivity tool, across 90 NHS organisations found that AI-powered administrative support could save NHS staff on average 43 minutes per staff member per day. Scaled up, the figure equates to five weeks of time being saved per person annually.
Results from the trial show that a full roll-out could save up to 400,000 hours of staff time per month, equating to ‘millions of hours every year’, The Department of Health and Social Care said. The aim of the introduction of AI into the health service is to reduce the administrative burden on staff, therefore freeing up valuable time that can be redirected towards patient care and clinical activities.
Across the Humber region, The Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, the NHS Humber and North Yorkshire ICB, Haxby Group Hull, and Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust have all been involved in the pilot.
The Yorkshire Ambulance Service (YAS) NHS Trust has also been included, using Copilot to automate meeting minutes and reports. The use of Copilot has lead to overall efficiency savings estimated at 1–3 days per month, allowing staff to focus on proactive and strategic work.
The success seen at YAS could potentially be replicated on a wider scale as currently, over one million online Teams meetings take place across the NHS each month. With Microsoft 365 Copilot, 83,333 hours in note-taking time could be saved every month, it is claimed.
The trial builds on NHS England and Microsoft’s existing partnership to provide all NHS organisations with access to Microsoft 365 productivity tools, demonstrating how the NHS can use its collective buying power to secure market-leading products at reduced cost for taxpayers – while driving forward the efficiency improvements essential for a modern health service.
Health Innovation Minister, Dr Zubir Ahmed, said: “As an NHS surgeon and clinician, I know how frustrating it can be to be held up by archaic technology that makes day-to-day tasks painstakingly long. This partnership with Microsoft will help free up staff from spending time on admin so they can focus on what they want to be doing – treating patients.
“Innovations like this will help drive NHS productivity so patients can get the treatment they need sooner and there is better value for taxpayers. We’re making sure every pound is spent on cutting waiting times and boosting care through our Plan for Change.”
Darren Hardman, CEO, Microsoft UK and Ireland has also spokes of the importance of AI technologies helping make the NHS more efficient. He said: “This major trial proves the extraordinary potential of AI to transform healthcare.
“By reducing admin and giving healthcare workers back a reported 43 minutes every day, Microsoft 365 Copilot can help the NHS redirect hundreds of thousands of hours each month towards patient care and potentially save hundreds of millions of pounds every year. We’re proud to support the NHS in this digital transformation, which shows how AI can reduce time-consuming admin for NHS workers and so improve the quality of patient care.”
By: Andrew Spence, LDRS
