ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Waiting list to recovery: AI in the patient journey
From referral and booking to discharge and recovery, artificial intelligence (AI) is helping NHS Trusts create safer, more efficient and connected patient journeys. John Clarke, head of Client Solutions – Health at Netcall, explores the practical ways AI and automation are improving care.
Right: Remote monitoring tools allow clinicians to track vital signs,
symptoms and recovery patterns from home.
Every point in the patient journey is under pressure. From lengthy waiting lists to strained discharge processes, the NHS is being asked to do more with less – while still maintaining safe, high-quality care. The urgency for change has never been greater. The NHS’s 10 Year Plan, now in its implementation phase, set out a vision for care that is more personalised, preventative and digitally enabled. Central to that vision is the use of technology to improve patient flow – ensuring people are seen faster, supported more effectively, and discharged safely.
AI and low-code automation aren’t futuristic concepts
in this context – they are practical tools that help deliver on the commitments outlined in the plan. When embedded properly, they offer staff better insight, streamline routine tasks, and ensure patients experience smoother transitions throughout their care. Digital transformation doesn’t need to start with a major system overhaul. Some of the biggest improvements are being driven by low-code platforms and AI tools embedded into the existing NHS infrastructure. What makes the difference is where and how they’re used.
Smarter access and booking The journey begins before a patient steps through the door. Appointment access is often the first test of a system’s efficiency – and its empathy. At the Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust, the implementation of a digital patient portal via an AI-driven low-code platform means that patients are engaged in the way they prefer – from the moment of referral, through their waiting period, to booking appointments, including diagnostics tests. The system nudges them with prompts if they get stuck, helping reduce failed attempts and missed appointments. This isn’t just a win for admin teams – it removes anxiety for patients, and ensures better use of diagnostic capacity. The results are clear. Since implementation, call wait times for diagnostics have been cut by 70 per cent and Did Not Attend (DNA) rates have been reduced from 8% to 2%. Similarly, Hampshire Hospitals NHS
Foundation Trust used an online patient engagement portal to tackle appointment communication head-on by reducing its reliance on appointment letters, streamlining over 8,000 letter templates into just a handful. Combined with SMS and email alerts, this dramatically improved patient clarity and responsiveness, while freeing up time for frontline staff. This resulted in a 79% patient uptake and a 39% reduction in DNAs. These are real, scalable examples of how AI and automation can enhance access, simplify admin, and improve experience – right from the beginning.
AI can free up
professionals to focus on patients rather than paperwork.
84 Health Estate Journal January 2026
Optimising patient flow Once a patient enters the system, triage determines how quickly and effectively they are seen. AI tools are now helping to speed up this process.
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