Two NHS trusts to use speech-to

Technology that listens to patient consultations and generates notes will be rolled out at two NHS trusts, after a successful pilot scheme.

The project at Walsall Healthcare "on average reduced clinicians' documentation time to less than four minutes per patient", The Royal Wolverhampton said.

Equipment listened "securely" and automatically generated "structured clinical notes, which are reviewed, edited where necessary and approved before being added to the patient's record", it explained.

The Royal Wolverhampton, which has a strategic partnership with Walsall Healthcare, said the technology would "initially be introduced in Emergency Departments and outpatient specialties across both Trusts, and across all areas by 2028".

According to The Royal Wolverhampton, new digital ambient voice technology [AVT] "helps clinicians better focus on their consultations".

It added that the decision to introduce it followed a eight-month pilot at the Walsall Trust, which proved to be a success.

The technology was tested by clinicians in the emergency department, medical same-day emergency care, dermatology, ENT [ear, nose and throat] and audiology, as well as obstetrics and gynaecology.

Group deputy chief executive and chief strategy officer at both trusts, Simon Evans, said they were "committed to adopting innovative digital solutions across all our care services to bring benefits".

Implementing the technology would "support our clinicians to deliver patient care by reducing the administrative burden, giving them back more time during a consultation", he added.

Walsall Healthcare lead for quality improvement and AVT, Dr Jamil Aslam, said its initial pilot had released "tens of thousands of hours back to frontline teams across multiple specialties, including the emergency department".

Following the pilot, Heidi Health was chosen as the trusts' preferred supplier.

Its Europe director, Raghav Sharma, said: "This partnership marks a step forward for the Trusts, giving their clinicians the time and capacity to focus on patient care, rather than paperwork.

"We're committed to easing the administration pressure on NHS staff across the Midlands region", he added.

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The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust