How AI is transforming patient care and tackling waiting lists in Cheshire and Merseyside
Friday, 15 May 2026
The NHS in Cheshire and Merseyside is harnessing the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to improve patient care, reduce waiting times and support frontline staff.
Across the region, AI-powered tools are already helping clinicians to prioritise patients more effectively, speed up diagnosis, and ensure people are seen by the right service at the right time.
The C2-Ai Surgery Hero app supports patients waiting for planned surgery in Cheshire and Merseyside. The app uses AI to keep in regular contact with patients, provide diet and exercise advice, monitor changes in their health and identify those who may need earlier intervention. This approach helps clinicians prioritise care more effectively while ensuring patients are physically and mentally prepared for surgery.
A study involving 502 participants who used the app found that there was a 72 percent reduction in complications following surgery and a 35 percent reduction in re-admissions. The work has also been highlighted in The Sunday Times and the Financial Times for its impact on reducing long waits and improving patient experience.
Elsewhere, the Cheshire and Merseyside Radiology Imaging Network (CAMRIN) has introduced Annalise AI, a transformational imaging support tool. Annalise AI assists radiologists by rapidly analysing scans and flagging potential abnormalities, helping teams manage rising demand while maintaining high standards of safety and accuracy.
The technology is enabling faster reporting, earlier diagnosis and more timely treatment for patients across the region. The project gained national recognition after being shortlisted for a HSJ Digital Award for Driving Change Through AI and Automation.
Meanwhile, a number of NHS trusts in Cheshire and Merseyside have partnered with AI technology provider Skin Analytics to use a cutting-edge AI-powered dermatology system to speed up the diagnosis of suspected skin cancer. The technology can help detect cancerous, pre-cancerous and common harmless skin conditions through photographic images, helping clinicians assess skin images more quickly and accurately.
Since being implemented, the AI system has helped detect over 12,000 confirmed cancer cases, enabling faster referrals to urgent specialist care, while also confirming over 5,000 benign cases, providing reassurance for those patients and a speedier discharge.
In musculoskeletal (MSK) services, the MSK Network’s Digital Assessment Routing Tool (DART) pilot uses AI to analyse information provided directly by patients while they are on waiting lists. The tool helps stratify patients by clinical urgency and route them to the most appropriate care pathway.
As part of a wider programme of targeted interventions, the pilot has contributed to a significant reduction in long waits for first MSK appointments, while improving patient experience and supporting clinical decision-making.
At Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, clinicians are using Lyrebird, an ‘ambient’ AI medical scribe that listens to clinical consultations and automatically generates structured notes and correspondence.
This technology reduces the administrative burden on staff and ensures accurate, real-time documentation of consultations, allowing clinicians to focus more time on their patients, while giving families faster access to letters following an appointment.
John Llewellyn, Chief Digital Officer at NHS Cheshire and Merseyside, said:
“AI is already making a real difference for patients and staff across Cheshire and Merseyside. By supporting earlier diagnosis, smarter triage and better use of our clinical capacity, these technologies help us deliver safer, more timely and more personalised care.
“Importantly, these tools are also helping us tackle the elective backlog and make the best use of our resources, while supporting the wider ambitions of the NHS 10 Year Plan for Health. Used responsibly and ethically, AI is a powerful enabler for transforming services and improving outcomes for the communities we serve.
“Looking ahead, we are undertaking a widespread rollout of ambient voice technology across our NHS trusts and GP practices, and we are also piloting more autonomous ‘agentic’ AI solutions to identify where we can most effectively support improved productivity and assist our workforce.”