The Science and Technology Facilities Council’s (STFC) Hartree Centre and the Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust have formed a strategic partnership to develop the use of AI in healthcare.
They are planning to run a series of scoping projects to explore the adoption and integration of advanced digital technologies, from AI to quantum computing. The projects will be focused on mapping out pathways to enhance healthcare solutions, with a primary goal of optimising patient outcomes.
STFC has identified a number of challenges for the work, including the more accurate detection and diagnosis of diseases, more personalised healthcare, upskilling the workforce, and using AI for better prediction and decision making in areas including mental health care.
Unlocking potential
Kate Royse, director of the STFC Hartree Centre said: "Our mission is to equip UK industry with the knowledge, skills, and compute needed to fully unlock the potential of advanced digital technologies.
“This collaboration is not just about technology, it's about enhancing the digital skills of the UK NHS workforce and making digital technologies more accessible. From automating tasks, to monitoring at-risk patients, the ultimate aim is to optimise patient outcomes, to the benefit of the whole of society."
Prof Joe Rafferty CBE, Mersey Care’s chief executive officer, said: “We’re the largest provider of some of the most specialist mental healthcare in the NHS. This scale and the data we produce allows us to talk about the interrelationship between physical, mental and social health.
“Our vision is not merely to create a world class digital research centre but to do so in order to deliver the best results possible to our patients, service users and our communities where we know health inequalities adversely affect lives, economies and opportunity.”
Located at STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory, the Hartree Centre is home to some of the most advanced computing, data and AI technologies in the UK.
Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country, with a role in providing mental health care to patients nationally.
