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Hancock: NHS must adopt new technology or it will not survive

Matt Hancock called for wider takeup of artificial intelligence  - Rii Schroer
Matt Hancock called for wider takeup of artificial intelligence - Rii Schroer

The NHS must adopt new technology in order to survive, the health secretary has warned, as a report calls for widespread use of robots and artificial intelligence.

The study by the Taxpayers Alliance suggests one tenth of the NHS budget could be saved by the introduction of “automation” across the health service.

The report highlights innovations, such as the use of AI to analyse emergency calls, which were found to detect life-threatening situations more quickly.

It also found public demand for greater use of automated systems to book appointments.

Research found nine in 10 people preferring to book GP appointments online, with an enthusiasm for replacing GP receptionists with automated systems.

The study estimates that the amount of staff time saved by greater use of such technology is equivalent to £12.5bn a year - around a tenth of its budget.

In a foreword to the report, Matt Hancock, Health Secretary, said: “Tech transformation in the NHS directly unlocks or frees resources for just about every other improvement we want to see, from using data to help boost cancer survival rates to joining up health and care to giving clinicians back the precious gift of time.

“Longer-term, it’s the only way we’re going to bridge the gap between finite resources and the growing demand of an ageing population.”

The report examined findings from the Institute for Public Policy Research which estimated that a total of £18.5 billion a year could be saved annually from health and social care by 2030, with wider use of automation.

Around £12.5 billion came from savings from the NHS - around a tenth of its budget.

John O'Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "The Government has committed to making the NHS a major spending priority, but everybody knows that it's going to take more than just money to improve health services in this country.

"The biggest priority should always be striving towards better outcomes for patients, which means freeing up NHS staff from monotonous tasks and giving them more time to spend on real care.

"Exciting developments in technology could deliver savings for taxpayers - but also, crucially, save more lives.

It comes as a separate study by University College Cork, found that patients being discharged from hospital were far less likely to suffer a medication error, if they were given a USB stick with details of the drugs they should be taking.