The ten-year agreement defines a partnership to develop a new “Digital-First Integrated Care” healthcare assistance model for 300,000 people throughout Wolverhampton and surrounding areas.
The agreement aims to provide patients with greater control over their health, faster treatment, less hospital access, treatment from home and greater access to their data.
Healthcare staff will have free time for patients with the most urgent and complex problems and will enjoy better information sharing.
Through a single free application, patients will have access to primary and secondary care and to these functions:
- Clinical consultations with specialist doctors and nurses from the Royal Wolverhampton Trust (RWT) and Babylon
- Management of appointments and prescriptions
- Personal medical records, which will allow patients to see their medical information and review their visits
- Health assessment, i.e. a report based on a patient’s medical history and lifestyle that will be displayed through a “digital twin”.
- AI Health Assistant, which will provide users with medical information and triage advice, based on epidemiological data, on their symptoms
- Health Management, which will generate personalised care plans to support the proactive care of patients with chronic diseases
- Monitor, which can use real-time health information from wearable technologies and related applications
- Rehabilitation after hospitalization, with fast remote clinical responses to help recovery and avoid readmissions
The first new services should be operational by the end of 2020.
RWT’s Managing Director, David Loughton, said: “I am delighted to announce this long-term partnership with Babylon, which will work alongside RWT’s primary, secondary and community support teams to transform the way we provide support“.
“We know that our patients are eager to use technologies that will improve access and give them greater control over their health, well-being and social inclusion. For example, it will be normal for a chronic patient to have a blood test at home, obtain the results in their app which will notify the specialist if they need an appointment. The patient will choose the date, get a consultation through the app and get a treatment plan from their specialist. The app will encourage him to complete it, while assessing the impact it is having. This is our vision for joint, integrated care“.
“We also know from our doctors that freeing up time for the treatment of chronic patients is a top priority and there is consensus that this could be facilitated by technology.” “This partnership with Babylon consists of clinical co-design and patient co-design.”
“The greatest challenge health care should face in the NHS and internationally is the availability of professionals. In the next ten years the gap between the number of staff needed and the number available could reach almost 250,000 in England alone. As medicine transforms and technology improves, it is crucial for the NHS, to develop a digitally enhanced workforce“.
The Royal Wolverhampton Trust is one of the largest providers of acute care and community services in the West Midlands, with over 850 beds at the New Cross site, 56 rehabilitation beds at West Park Hospital and 54 beds at Cannock Chase Hospital. RWT is Wolverhampton’s largest employer, the Trust employs over 9,400 people, covering more than 350 different roles.
Digital-health 