A new strategy aiming to revolutionise care and improve experience using the latest digital advances and AI has been launched at one of the country’s leading children’s hospitals.
Through its new dedicated AI strategy, Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust is responding to the needs of children and young people to create healthcare services that are fit for the future.
By transforming care for children and young people using safe, effective, and ethical AI, Alder Hey aims to empower staff by automating administrative tasks and enhancing decision-making; revolutionise diagnostics and care pathways using data and AI-driven tools; and position Alder Hey as a national and international leader in paediatric AI healthcare.
Kate Warriner, Chief Transformation and Digital Officer at Alder Hey NHS Foundation Trust, said: “AI is no longer a vision of the future – it is here, and it is already transforming the way we live and work. Through our strategy, we are making a bold and exciting commitment to harness the power of AI to empower children, young people, families, and our colleagues at Alder Hey.
“Our innovative approach is already delivering meaningful benefits. Looking ahead, AI will support our teams by simplifying routine tasks, offering real-time insights and predictions, and automating notifications. This will help reduce burnout and free up more time for colleagues to focus on what matters most – delivering exceptional care to the children and young people we serve."
Alder Hey aims to enhance children and young people-centred care through AI techniques, including virtual assistants for families, such as scheduling, reminders, and symptom checkers, as well as predictive analytics for early diagnosis and intervention.
Outcomes for children and young people will be transformed through AI-optimised care pathways, predictive analytics for risks such as deterioration or readmission, AI-enhanced remote monitoring and telehealth tools, and the use of AI to capture patient-reported outcomes.
The Trust will also use AI to revolutionise diagnostics, including within medical imaging, rare disease detection, genomics, wearables, and neurodevelopmental and cardiac diagnosis.
Alongside this, Alder Hey staff will benefit from the latest AI documentation tools, such as speech-to-text and smart summaries, and personal AI assistants to support administrative and clinical workflows.
Staff at Alder Hey are already seeing the positive impact of AI on delivering care. The Trust has been piloting Lyrebird, an AI scribe that securely records conversations between parents and clinicians. Funded by Alder Hey Children’s Charity to support staff in using this speech-to-text AI technology, Lyrebird uses the recorded information from a consultation to generate notes for a case on the Electronic Patient Records system, write a letter to a family, and more, based on the conversation it has recorded. Over 11,000 consultations have taken place through Lyrebird so far, with notable results already including an improved staff experience, alleviation of administrative burden, streamlined processes, enhanced patient experience, capturing accurate notes from consultations with clinicians remaining in the room, and reduced need for note-taking, allowing clinicians to focus elsewhere.
Mr Vejay N. Vakharia, Consultant Neurosurgeon and Chief Information Officer for surgery at Alder Hey, said: "The introduction of ambient AI (Lyrebird) is the first use of this technology in the NHS that has had a meaningful impact on my daily clinical practice.
“Beyond the convenience and time-saving benefits, I am free to engage with patients and their families, knowing that all the important facts are being accurately recorded. The AI-generated letters are easier for patients to understand by removing unnecessary medical jargon and allow for referral letters to be generated instantly from the consultation."
Alder Hey’s new AI Strategy aligns with the Government’s recent NHS 10-Year Health Plan announced by Health Secretary Wes Streeting on 3 July 2025. In it, the Plan sets out how the NHS needs to modernise using the latest digital advances, AI, research and other technologies.
John Grinnell, Chief Executive of Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Our children, young people and families have told us they want care that is faster, more personalised, closer to home. Like all NHS organisations, we must develop if we are to provide children, young people and our staff with healthcare services that are fit for the future.”
Safety of data is paramount, and like all of Alder Hey’s digital solutions, they are developed in line with national clinical safety and data protection standards.
You can read the strategy at www.alderhey.nhs.uk
