Cambridgeshire Community Services and Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS trusts have shared outcomes from the use of an AI app in physiotherapy services, amidst a £2 million procurement exercise to roll out a similar programme for the next three years.
During a 12-week pilot at Cambridgeshire Community in partnership with the GIRFT Further Faster programme and Flok Health, patients in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough were invited to use an AI-based app for their physiotherapy, with more than 2,500 signing up.
Outcomes from that pilot included a 44 percent reduction in waiting times for musculoskeletal services, and a 55 percent reduction in back pain waiting lists. The trusts also highlight “hundreds of hours” of clinician time saved to focus on patients with more complex needs.
“Due to the success of the scheme, the intention is now to roll-out a similar programme across MSK services in Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust and Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust (which are due to join in April 2026 to form a single trust),” the trusts state, pointing to hopes to improve patient outcomes, reduce waiting times, and free-up physiotherapy services to support patients who need them most.
A procurement notice from CCS and NCHC demonstrated the intent to procure a digital physiotherapy clinic including AI support for triage and diagnosis, at an estimated total value of £2 million. The selected solution will offer an end-to-end clinical service for both new and existing patients, according to the trusts, “operating as a complete alternative to standard care pathways and not limited to an adjunctive, supplementary, or “waiting well” initiative”.
Suppliers should be able to take ownership over the patient pathway as a whole, covering referrals, triage, clinical assessment, treatment planning, treatment delivery, and discharge. CQC registration is required, and the AI solution must be recognised as a Class II medical device, available 24 hours per day to promote rapid triage and diagnosis.
A contract notice is expected to be published 2 March 2026, offering a three-year initial term with options to extend for a further two years.
Wider trend: NHS health tech innovation
The Department of Health and Social Care along with NHS England has issued guidance encouraging health sector buyers to work with SMEs, pointing to benefits including faster innovation, improved health equity, stronger supply chains, and advanced digital capabilities. Pointing to the fact that SMEs are “often at the cutting edge of healthcare innovation” with tools and technologies such as AI and assistive technologies, the government states: “Engaging with SMEs early gives you access to agile, tailored solutions that can often solve specific system pressures faster and at a lower cost than traditional suppliers.”
Barts Health NHS Trust plans to invest in ambient voice technology “at scale” following its participation in a national pilot. The pilot saw 250 staff members from across the trust using Oracle’s Clinical AI Agent to capture conversations during clinic appointments. An app on smartphones was used to record, allowing for the tech to transcribe, summarise, and turn conversations into clinical notes, reportedly generating letters for patients and GPs. More than two-thirds of clinicians that took part stated that the quality of their consultations had improved, and more than half reported saving five minutes or more per appointment, Barts Health states.
Changes to the Digital Technology Assessment Criteria (DTAC) to reflect findings from industry engagement have seen reductions to the number of questions asked of suppliers, clearer guidance on how to complete assessments, and closer alignment with NICE to focus on software-based digital health technologies. The new form will replace the previous DTAC assessment from 6 April 2026, with suppliers advised to no longer use the former version from this date.
