Four key areas AI is helping Trusts drive operational productivity

There's a lot of talk around the role of AI in the NHS.

Governance, regulation, clinical safety and understanding its tangible impacts all remain centre to the conversations, making it at times a contentious topic.

But after years of promise and skepticism, the safe delivery of AI is beginning find its place in care settings—and showcase real impact. At a clinical level, AI is demonstrating real value by supporting clinicians: detecting anomalies in scans, flagging them for review, speeding up diagnosis times, and improving accuracy.

While its contribution to clinical settings is gaining momentum, AI's potential to transform operational efficiency remains both misunderstood and underutilised.

"I don't think there is any AI doctor that can do what GPs do - however, I think we are entering an era where AI can increasingly help us with workloads, and that includes doctors." - Dr Charlotte Refsum, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change

AI is not here to replace jobs. It's here to support teams for a smarter, better-connected and more productive NHS - all without adding to the workload of NHS staff. And this isn’t some visionary goal. The tools to achieve it are readily available, and when implemented correctly, can unlock new levels of productivity and tangible savings for the NHS.

Here are four key areas where AI is making significant operational impacts in the NHS:

1. Predicting DNAs before they happen

The ever-present problem of DNAs currently cost the NHS over £1 billion annually, and determining why a patient fails to attend their appointment is often complex.

AI is reshaping the way Trusts approach and manage DNAs.

By analysing real-time patient behaviour patterns, AI can identify which groups or appointment times are more prone to no-shows. For example, it might reveal that older patients are less likely to attend early morning appointments, while younger professionals may prefer these time slots.

Supported with these actionable, predictive insights, teams can proactively intervene and engage with patients at higher risk of missing their appointments, reducing the likelihood of a DNA.

AI can automatically send personalised smart reminders, trigger direct messages, or even automated calls to engage these patients. If a high-risk patient doesn’t respond to the automated engagement, they can be flagged and added to prioritised calling lists for manual follow-up, ensuring no one slips through the cracks.

This hybrid approach saves time for booking teams, as they no longer need to contact patients aimlessly, freeing up their time to engage with harder-to-reach individuals who may still require manual intervention. This not only significantly reduces DNAs but also decreases the administrative burden on staff by automating routine tasks and ensuring that teams operate more efficiently.

2. Supporting smarter, safer capacity planning

It's hard to imagine an airline not knowing the number of seats available on each flight. Airlines use detailed data on no-show rates to carefully overbook flights, optimising their capacity.

In contrast, the NHS often still relies on traditional, outdated overbooking methods.

Many care settings struggle to track how many appointment slots are open in their clinics each month. Just as overbooking can cause frustration for passengers who miss out on flights, a similar issue arises in healthcare when appointments are mismanaged.

AI can help change this.

Predictive AI tools enable Trusts to leverage real-time data and insights to forecast demand better and make more informed, data-driven decisions when planning capacity.

With AI, Trusts can safely overbook clinic slots, taking into account patterns of no-shows or cancellations while ensuring that available capacity is optimised. AI also enables booking teams to dynamically adjust schedules to accommodate last-minute changes, helping to minimise clinic downtime and keep operations running smoothly.

This smarter capacity planning approach is far more sustainable than simply expanding clinic sizes and putting further pressure on an already stretched workforce. AI helps Trusts plan more effectively and ensure that patients receive timely care without overwhelming staff.

3. Automating high-value, repetitive tasks

AI's ability to automate time-consuming but important administrative tasks is another game-changer for NHS Trusts. Smart reminders, automated calls, and patient engagement systems allow Trusts to streamline communication with high-risk patients, reducing the likelihood of DNAs.

For administrative teams, AI frees up valuable time by automating routine tasks, such as sending reminders to patients and managing appointment rescheduling. This allows staff to focus on more pressing tasks, such as contacting patients who are harder to reach or those who require manual follow-up.

For clinicians, this automation means less time spent on administrative work and more time dedicated to delivering timely, quality care to patients. By reducing the manual workload, Trusts can improve both patient experiences and staff productivity.

4. Delivering tangible cost savings through better resource allocation

AI-driven insights about patient behaviour patterns not only help predict no-shows but also support smarter resource allocation and clinic capacity optimisation. By understanding when and where demand will fluctuate, Trusts can adjust clinic schedules in realtime and safely overbook, ensuring no costly appointment slot goes to waste.

Trusts can achieve significant cost savings by leveraging AI to reduce DNAs, optimise clinic capacity, and automate repetitive tasks. Missed appointments are costly in terms of both resources and time, but AI-driven engagement strategies ensure that the number of DNAs is significantly reduced, maximising clinic efficiency.

In addition, AI's ability to forecast clinic demand and dynamically adjust schedules helps prevent overbooking and underutilisation, reducing the need for costly premium-rate clinics to manage capacity. By automating routine administrative tasks, AI frees up valuable staff time, enabling better workforce allocation and ensuring that resources are used where they are most needed, ultimately improving operational efficiency and patient care.

AI-driven efficiency for the NHS

By integrating AI-powered solutions, Trusts can significantly improve their day-to-day operations and reduce DNAs as part of elective recovery efforts. While concerns about AI's role in healthcare, particularly around safety and data security, are valid, it's important to note that AI systems used in the NHS are tightly regulated and designed to work within strict safety guidelines.

These AI systems complement teams, allowing them to manage increasing workloads while maintaining full oversight and control over patient care.

By supporting staff rather than replacing them, AI helps streamline operations without adding pressure to an already overstretched workforce, enabling Trusts to deliver more efficient and effective care.