St Bartholomew’s Hospital is revolutionizing patient care by utilizing artificial intelligence to detect missed appointments.
The AI tool analyzes outpatient letters, cross-referencing key phrases with electronic health records to ensure necessary actions are taken. It has already prevented missed appointments in vital departments like congenital heart disease and uro-oncology.
Simon Cashin, the brain behind this initiative, believes that AI can enhance efficiency, reduce patient wait times, and enhance safety. Early findings suggest certain ethnic groups may be disproportionately affected by missed appointments, indicating potential language barriers.
Barts Charity is being approached for additional funding to expand the project and explore further AI applications. Meanwhile, other NHS trusts are adopting AI technology to predict and prevent missed appointments, showing promising results in reducing DNAs.
