Ambulance bosses planning to create a more digitally-focused Lincolnshire service to reduce delays and waiting times
Ambulance bosses say they’re planning to create more ‘digitally-focused’ services in a bid to reduce delays and waiting times.
Members of Lincolnshire County Council’s health scrutiny committee received an update from East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) about its proposal to create a more integrated and community-focused service and to invest in digital infrastructure, including artificial intelligence (AI).
At a meeting on Wednesday, April 1, North Kesteven District Councillor Jonathan Pessol (Conservative – Hykeham) asked what the ambulance service is doing to ensure that patient information is passed on effectively and efficiently between services.
Sue Cousland, Lincolnshire divisional director for EMAS, explained how improvements in the technology which the service uses could improve patient outcomes.
She said: “Instead of finger typing into the iPad, can we dictate accurately and successfully into a patient record system?
“I know that is being looked at at part of the trust and there’s also some other initiatives going on in the system to bring in AI in a satisfactory and clinically acceptable way.
“But we do have to be very careful with certain digital applications.”
EMAS said the move towards digital technologies was part of the wider NHS 10-year plan to deliver more integrated and community-focused services – where services are delivered locally and are more tailored to patients’ specific needs.
Councillors also heard that EMAS is considering introducing AI to help reduce delays in the hand-over of information between hospitals and the ambulance service.
EMAS said it hopes this will keep more people out of hospital – reducing the demand and need for ambulances – and providing additional resources which can be used elsewhere.
Wayne Maddison, senior divisional manager for transformation at EMAS, said: “It’s about that risk and the clinical validation to really ensure that AI is giving us exactly what it needs to do.
“There are projects moving forward now – at a very early stage – and we also have a central AI team with an EMAS (East Midlands Ambulance Service) just to give us that governance and oversight.”