How Technology is Shaping the Future of the NHS

Featured article by Matt, Independent Technology Author

Whilst the world’s attention has, in recent months, been focused on Donald Trump’s unswerving determination to repeal Barack Obama’s groundbreaking medical insurance legislation, Obamacare, it’s clear to even the most casual of observers that the UK’s own healthcare system is itself in a state of crisis. The NHS has both its critics and its supporters, but few can deny the fact that it is facing unprecedented pressures currently. Demands on staff are increasing, budgets are being slashed, and the UK’s population is becoming increasingly unhealthy.

Two of the biggest health pressures put on the NHS are obesity and smoking-related illnesses. The NHS has reported that around 25% of the adult population of the UK is clinically obese, whilst smoking is the single biggest cause of preventable deaths and disease in the UK. The NHS is leading the way in promoting healthier lifestyle choices to address these issues, and whilst the numbers of regular smokers in the UK is falling, smoking still consumes an incredible amount of NHS resources. There are numerous options for those who want to give up to explore and of all the Nicotine Replacement Therapies (NRTs), e-cigarettes have become the most popular. Public Health England recently claimed them to be 95% safer than traditional cigarettes, although there is some debate over the long-terms effects of them.

On top of these two major contributors to the strains on the NHS, winter brings its own pressures. During the colder months, recorded deaths rise by up to 40%, putting ever greater stress on the NHS and the people who work within it. A recent survey has revealed that more than 8 in 10 GPs feel that their ability to provide consistent quality care to their patients is being undermined by the volume of work they are being asked to do. It’s clear then, that something has to change, and change dramatically, if the NHS is to remain fit for purpose in the years ahead. It’s hoped that technology may well be the catalyst for this change.

Can technology shape healthcare?

It would seem that the NHS has already started to see how technology could revolutionise certain aspects of healthcare provision, particularly in terms of diagnosis of conditions and medical records analysis. Last year saw the first major project that embraced this new approach to technology, when the Royal Free London NHS Trust partnered with Google’s AI acquisition, DeepMind, to develop a groundbreaking new app to help doctors to diagnose and monitor patients with kidney injuries. The app, named Streams, can access huge quantities of patient data, in order to effectively detect and diagnose conditions where the patient is likely to deteriorate rapidly, so that treatment can be given much more quickly and accurately. The app will clearly help to save lives, but it will also save a huge amount of staff time, by speeding up the diagnosis and monitoring process. The estimated half a million staff hours saved by Streams each year will ease at least some pressure on the NHS, and will also reduce the potential for mistakes or omissions in diagnosis. As Streams is rolled out to other NHS trusts, it’s hoped that similar innovations will spread, helping to transform the NHS into a digitally-connected, intelligent healthcare system.

Already, DeepMind has moved on to further partnerships within the NHS. Last year, the company signed another deal with London’s Moorfields Eye Hospital, to build a system capable of reading eye scans and detecting the earliest signs of degenerative ocular conditions. Again, providing centralised access to huge swathes of patient data is central to the new system.  Prof. Peng Tee Khaw, head of Moorfield’s ophthalmology research lab, has said that DeepMind’s AI system has given him access to “the experience of 10,000 lifetimes.” The statistics surrounding degenerative eye conditions are startling: almost 98% of serious eyesight loss can be prevented or slowed by early diagnosis. The potential of DeepMind’s new partnership with Moorfields is, therefore, immense.

Innovations elsewhere in the NHS

Other companies are also working closely with the NHS, to put technology at the heart of healthcare provision. Babylon Health has recently started trials of a chatbot app, which provides self-diagnosis facilities to the general public. Designed to ease the pressure on the NHS’s 111 non-emergency helpline, the chatbot asks a series of specific questions, and then analyses the patient’s responses in order to provide an accurate response. Of course, this new system is very similar in approach to the existing 111 service, which relies on human operators to go through a similar process and then deliver scripted responses to callers. Babylon’s app, however, can assess conditions much more quickly, and process vast amounts of data to reach a diagnosis far more rapidly and effectively.

Whilst the most obvious benefit of this is prompt and accurate diagnosis of conditions, it does have another important goal, which is to improve patient access to medical services. The app allows patients to book GP appointments, schedule repeat prescriptions, and monitor their own health, in terms of sleep patterns, weight, blood pressure, heart rate and so on. In some ways, it’s a step forward from the functionality offered by the personal fitness apps that have captured the attention of many younger people in recent years.

Whilst the pressures on the NHS are real, and often alarming, it seems that technology could help turn things around. The population is getting older and less healthy, and doctors are still struggling with workloads and a healthcare system creaking with inefficient practices, but the NHS is, at the same time, embracing some pioneering technological changes. These changes will undoubtedly save lives, and they could even save the NHS itself.

Author bio:

Matt takes an interest in tech-related ways we, as a people, are looking into to overcome issues in modern day society. London based. 26.