We have been supporting the Lancashire and South Cumbria’s New Hospitals Programme to design and deliver digital infrastructures to benefit new hospital services, enhancing usability, data driven insights and automation.

Background

As part of the national New Hospital Programme, the Lancashire and South Cumbria region has been recognised as in need of funding to replace or refurbish existing hospital estate to address problems with ageing facilities and infrastructure in Preston at Royal Preston Hospital (RPH) and Lancaster at Royal Lancaster Infirmary (RLI).

Proposals also include investment in Furness General Hospital, required due to its geographically remote location and its proximity to some of the UK’s major strategic national assets.

This funding provides the region with a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform hospitals by 2030, with the positive effects set to enhance the lives of local people living and working in Lancashire and South Cumbria both now, and in generations to come.

Action

Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit are providing specialist digital leadership for the Lancashire and South Cumbria New Hospitals Programme to ensure that all digitally enabled functions and services are fully understood, considered and coordinated into the vision and delivery strategy.

Designing, integrating and delivering digital infrastructure and services that meets the needs of the new hospitals users, and that is innovative and user-centric are some of the key principles.

Impact

The Lancashire and South Cumbria New Hospitals Programme is benefitting from specialist digital in construction leadership to set strategic direction and to coordinate the integration of Lancashire and South Cumbria wide and site-specific digital services within a multi-site, large-scale construction programme.

The inputs will maximise the opportunities to create digitally enabled and coordinated hospitals from concept design stage. The eventual outputs will positively impact and benefit across all new hospital services, enhancing usability, data driven insights and automation; improving health and wellbeing; increasing sustainability and reducing capital expenditure by reducing duplication, sharing resources and decreasing operational costs.

“Having specialist digital in construction advice and expertise to develop and articulate a compelling vision and ambitious strategy for what can be achieved through digital transformation enabled by new hospital facilities has been invaluable for the programme. It helps to really bring to life the potential and impact for patients, staff and local communities in a tangible way. Importantly, this has been delivered within the context of the wider NHS Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care Board digital strategic objectives, with strong relationships established at a programme and a system level.”

Rebecca Malin | Programme Director, Lancashire and South Cumbria New Hospitals Programme