Can technology and AI ‘save the NHS’?

Read original article

With the NHS under major pressure from a pincer-like combination of escalating demand and persistent workforce shortages, there are widespread hopes that technology and artificial intelligence (AI) can come to the rescue.

These hopes are woven through the main party manifestos on the NHS, all of which set out high aspirations to reap the benefits of digital, data and AI. And they’re not wrong to hope: effectively implemented and used, technology and AI offer significant potential for improving care quality and efficiency.

What’s missing, though, is any kind of route map or plan for how to get there, or for how the NHS will realise these benefits in practice. For whoever is appointed Secretary of State for Health and Social Care next week, drawing up such a plan must be a priority. Below, we explore what it will need to include.

What uses of health care technology stand out in the main party manifestos?

Given that the NHS is one of the public’s top concerns, it is no surprise that all parties devote significant sections of their manifestos to it. And in addition to headline promises on increasing funding, recruiting staff and cutting waits, the main party manifestos all contain important commitments on tech-enabled care.