A new trust strategy from Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust has shared commitments to digital and AI-enabled transformation, and a phased three-year roadmap to 2031.
Priorities include an expanded acute care at home and virtual ward model, shared digital platforms to support integrated neighbourhood teams, the automation of high volume clinical and operational processes, and the use of automated triage, ambient voice technology, and AI-supported tools to improve productivity and decision-making.
“Over the past four years, we have built a strong and credible foundation, delivering 117 digital transformation projects aligned to our strategy,” Midlands Partnership says. “This demonstrates our ability to plan and deliver at scale and gives confidence in our capacity to achieve further step-change over the next five years. Our focus now is on embedding and scaling high-impact digital and AI capabilities that directly benefit frontline care.”
Early progress is evidenced through the use of AI-supported triage tools, virtual assistants, and robotic process automation, according to the trust, noting ‘integrated digital front doors’ will enable service users to benefit from tools such as patient-facing triage and appointment management systems.
Midlands Partnership outlines investment will be made in modern data platforms and analytics to inform better decision-making. Use of patient-facing digital tools such as its patient engagement portal and NHS App will be expanded, and research and innovation partnerships will be strengthened to test, evaluate, and scale digital approaches.
The trust also commits to improving workforce digital skills literacy and confidence, as well as to maintaining a “secure and clinically safe” digital environment with 24/7 cyber operations, regular device refreshes, and strong clinical safety governance.
A prevention-focused approach will be developed across the organisation by embedding prevention and population health, and using data and insights to identify and reduce inequalities in access or outcomes.
The trust further plans to build on its university status to become a “nationally recognised centre for world-class research, innovation, and learning”, and to work with partners across industry, local government, and the voluntary sector to develop new models of care.
Wider trend: NHS Trust digital transformation
HTN was joined by digital leaders from across the health sector for a deep dive into best practices for success in health tech transformation. Our panel shared details of current and past projects, looking at what worked and what didn’t, learnings, best practices, and overcoming challenges. Panellists included Simon Brown (Simon B), head of digital at Royal Papworth Hospital; Tom Stocker, CHCIO and EPR Advisor; and Simon McNair (Simon M), head of business development for digital services at Restore Information Management.
NHS England has published the latest Digital Maturity Assessment report for 2024 and 2025, offering a system-wide view of digital maturity by trust and ICB. By including 2024 data alongside latest 2025 scores, it offers further insight into progress for each organisation. Key findings for the period April to June 2025 include that whilst 93 percent of providers are using an EPR, only 30 percent have “fully integrated bi-directional data flows”. 90 percent of providers report having a central data repository, with two-thirds of these including both clinical and non-clinical data; and “almost all” providers state that their staff can access a Shared Care Record, with 90 percent having the ability to do this directly through their EPR or single sign-on to the Shared Care Record system.
University College London Hospitals (UCLH) has shared a series of digital transformation plans and priorities in its five-year strategy to 2031, with plans to redesign care pathways with remote monitoring, digital tools to support care being delivered outside of hospitals, and to focus on information sharing via joined-up digital systems. UCLH highlights its work with a national initiative to integrate the Epic EHR with the NHS electronic prescription service, with an aim to create a model that other trusts will be able to replicate. Under the initiative, outpatient and some discharge prescriptions will be sent to community pharmacies to enable them to be collected locally.
