Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust has announced plans to introduce ambient voice technology across its clinical services and procure a new electronic patient record system. The decisions, presented at the trust's most recent board meeting, form part of an effort to reduce the administrative burden on clinical staff and update ageing digital infrastructure.

The trust will introduce ambient voice technology in stages, starting with its emergency department and outpatient services in gastroenterology and gynaecology. Subsequent phases will extend the technology to additional outpatient specialties and community services. The decision to proceed in stages reflects lessons drawn from an earlier pilot conducted in outpatient clinics. The rollout is being carried out in partnership with neighbouring South West London trusts and the SWL Acute Provider Collaborative.

Ambient voice technology records and transcribes clinical consultations, automating the production of notes and administrative documentation. Proponents argue it frees clinicians to focus on patient care rather than paperwork. The trust stated the programme will be overseen by staff responsible for information governance, data security and clinical safety.

A collaborative effort is underway with Croydon Health Services to advance the development of a new electronic patient record system. Before selecting a system, the trust conducted a staff survey that received more than 250 responses. The results pointed to three priorities: the ability to work across different digital tools, faster system response times, and greater ease of use. The trust's next steps are to run workshops with staff and produce a business case for procurement and implementation.

The board was direct about the condition of the trust's existing digital infrastructure. Its assurance framework describes a complex set of systems that are unreliable, largely incompatible with one another and in many cases no longer supported by their suppliers. A significant number of these systems are not connected to the trust's main patient record platform, requiring staff to carry out manual processes to compensate. The trust acknowledged the risks this presents and identified the integration of its information management and technology teams as a priority under a new, single digital strategy.

These operational difficulties are not incidental to the two programmes. They are the stated reason for them. The trust's current infrastructure, as described in its own board papers, leaves clinical and administrative staff managing workarounds that could otherwise be handled by functioning systems. The planned EPR procurement is intended to address this directly, though the timescale for delivery has not yet been confirmed.

Alongside the technology programmes, the trust has published a draft people strategy that sets out how it intends to build digital capability across its workforce. In the first year, staff at Band 8a level and above will complete a digital literacy programme covering artificial intelligence, data quality, cybersecurity and benefits realisation. In years two and three, the strategy requires digital objectives to be incorporated into personal development plans and appraisals for clinical and operational leaders. The trust described this as making digital accountability a standard leadership expectation rather than an optional consideration.

The scale of what Kingston and Richmond is attempting is substantial. Replacing a patient record system is among the more complex undertakings an NHS trust can pursue, involving procurement processes, data migration, staff training and extended periods of parallel running. Ambient voice technology, while increasingly common in NHS settings, brings its own requirements around governance and consent. Pursuing both simultaneously, while also restructuring digital teams and upskilling senior staff, requires sustained organisational commitment.

Whether the trust can deliver on the ambition it has set out will depend heavily on the pace of the EPR business case, the success of the phased voice technology rollout, and the degree to which the people strategy translates into genuine changes in how digital tools are used and valued. The board has set a clear direction. Delivery is the question that follows.

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