Too often, the NHS in Wales is an analogue service operating in a digital age – it remains over-reliant on paper records that are easily lost or damaged, hard for patients to access, and make sharing data difficult. It is also more difficult than it should be to access appointments digitally or through telehealth services.
To unlock greater effectiveness and productivity in our health services, we will promote greater digitisation and better management of data.
We will:
- Enhance access to telehealth and telemedicine, as part of our plan to tackle waiting lists.
- Improve the NHS Wales App, and make it a real tool to help people manage their health and participate actively in decisions about their healthcare.
- Legislate to improve health data standards, make it easier for data to be shared across health boards, and link records across the health and social care systems.
- Implement a new 10-year digital strategy for Digital Health and Care Wales – promoting innovation and the strategic use of AI and other emerging technologies in the NHS to reduce the administrative burden on healthcare professionals, speed up screening processes, improve diagnostics and assist in the development of personalised treatment plans.