Alex Green
Interim Joint Chief Executive, Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
Trevor Smith
Interim Joint Chief Executive, Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation TrustEssex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust Leaders Commit to Turning AI Ambition into Better Patient Care’s (EPUT) Interim Joint Chief Executives Trevor Smith and Alex Green set out their commitment to advancing the trust’s patient-led programme of AI and digital transformation, building on the foundations established by former Chief Executive Paul Scott.
We would like to begin by paying tribute to Paul Scott, whose leadership was instrumental in establishing Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust’s (EPUT) ambitious programme of AI and digital transformation. Paul recognised that rising demand, workforce pressures, and fragmented systems require a different approach. He championed the Digital Conference and its patient-led sprint sessions as a practical way of moving beyond discussion and identifying how technology, service redesign, and partnership working could improve care.
The Board was clear that technology alone would not transform services. Their vision placed patients, families, and lived experience at the centre, ensuring that innovation began with the realities of navigating care rather than with the capabilities of a particular product. The sprint sessions featured in this report reflect this approach, using patient personas to expose fragmentation, duplication, administrative burden, and missed opportunities for earlier intervention.
The priorities set out in this report provide a strong foundation for the next phase of EPUT’s work. They include developing a more integrated patient record and coherent data environment; using AI and digital tools to identify risk and support earlier, leading to more preventative care; reducing avoidable administrative demands on staff; and designing services that are coordinated, responsive, and trauma-informed. Just as importantly, the report recognises the need for strong governance, workforce involvement, and continuous monitoring to ensure that new tools remain safe, effective, and equitable.
As Interim Joint Chief Executives, we are committed to taking this programme forward. This will mean working closely with colleagues across EPUT, patients, carers, system partners, academia, and industry to translate the sprint findings into practical improvements. We will support responsible experimentation, but maintain a clear focus on evidence, measurable outcomes, and the experience of patients and staff.
This report is therefore not an endpoint for the programme. It provides a framework for continued delivery, learning, and accountability. We thank Paul for pioneering this work, and everyone who contributed their insight and expertise. Our responsibility now is to build on that foundation, sustain its momentum and ensure that innovation delivers meaningful improvements for the communities EPUT serves.
transformation ambitions across both the organisation and the wider NHS.
(Left to right: CEO of Health Innovation East, Piers Ricketts, Chief Executive of UK Healthcare and Life Sciences
Innovation, Joanne Bekis, Chief Technology Officer and Deputy Chief Information Officer at EPUT, Adam Whiting,
Head of Procurement at EPUT, Matt Vinter, and Chief Executive of Psyomics, Dr Melinda Rees)
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From Insight to Action sets out a practical roadmap for turning AI and digital innovation into measurable improvements for patients, staff and services at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT).
Drawing on EPUT’s Digital Conference and a series of patient-led sprint sessions, the report identifies fragmented records, disconnected pathways, administrative pressures and missed opportunities for earlier intervention as barriers to better care. It calls for a more integrated patient record, a coherent data environment and the responsible use of AI to identify risk, support prevention and reduce avoidable workloads.
The report also stresses that technology alone cannot transform services. Progress will depend on patient involvement, workforce engagement, strong governance and continuous evaluation to ensure that new tools are safe, effective and equitable. It provides EPUT and its partners with a framework for sustained delivery, learning and accountability.
To find out more about the conference and the outputs, please contact Partnerships Director Ben McDermott at bmcdermott@ukhlsi.co.uk