Patients across Sandwell, West Birmingham and Dudley are benefiting from digital improvements helping them get medicines more easily, receive the right scans and tests, and have important results followed up more quickly.
Five projects from Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust and The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust have now been recognised nationally after being shortlisted in the HTN Health Tech Awards 2026.
Together, the five shortlisted projects are helping to tackle everyday issues that matter to patients, getting the right medicine, having the right test, knowing important results have been reviewed and making sure information follows them through their care.
At Sandwell and West Birmingham, the Community Electronic Prescribing Service has been shortlisted for Best Health Tech Solution of the Year. The service allows prescriptions to be sent electronically to a patient’s chosen pharmacy, rather than relying on paper prescriptions being collected or delivered.
Initially introduced within palliative care and heart failure services, it has since been expanded to more community teams. Between September 2025 and March 2026, more than 49,000 medicines were prescribed through the service.
For patients, that can mean a simpler and quicker way to get the medicines they need, while community clinicians can spend less time travelling with prescriptions and more time providing care.
The Dudley Group is also shortlisted for Best Health Tech Solution of the Year for the introduction of MedCurrent iReferCDS. The system helps GPs choose the most appropriate scan or imaging test for a patient before a referral is made.
It is now being used across 46 GP practices by around 1,000 users and has supported more than 19,500 referrals. Almost two-thirds of requests received the highest appropriateness rating.
The system is also helping to reduce scans being cancelled or changed after referral. Between March and June 2026, cancelled requests stood at 9.3 per cent and changed requests at 6 per cent.
Diane Wake, Group Chief Executive, said: “Having five projects recognised nationally is a fantastic achievement, but what matters most is the difference they are making to patients.
“These are practical improvements that can mean fewer unnecessary journeys, quicker access to medicines, more appropriate tests and better follow-up of results.
“They are also making processes simpler for our staff, giving them more time to focus on caring for patients. I am incredibly proud of the teams across both trusts who have developed and introduced these changes.”
The Dudley Group’s electronic consent system has also been shortlisted, in the Best Solution for Clinicians category.
Using Concentric Health, consent information is recorded electronically and is available through the Trust’s electronic patient record. The system is now used across more than 30 specialties and services, with almost 39,000 digital consent episodes completed over a 12-month period.
For patients, electronic consent provides a clearer and more consistent record of the discussions they have had about their treatment, while reducing reliance on paper forms.
Two further projects at Dudley, developed with Altera Digital Health, have also reached the national shortlist.
The Sunrise Results Acknowledgement project is a finalist for Most Promising Pilot and focuses on one of the most important parts of a patient’s care – making sure test results are seen and acted on.
Instead of relying on paper-based processes, clinicians receive digital alerts when laboratory and radiology results are available for review.
During an initial eight-week pilot, more than 8,000 outpatient tests were tracked and acknowledged through the system, providing a clearer record of which results had been reviewed and helping teams manage follow-up more consistently.
Medicines on Admission has meanwhile been shortlisted for Best Use of Digital for Improving Care Pathways.
The project means information about a patient’s medicines can follow them more easily when they move from emergency care into an inpatient ward.
Rather than staff having to repeatedly enter the same information, existing medicines details can be transferred electronically. This helps reduce duplication and supports staff to maintain an accurate picture of the medicines a patient is taking at an important point in their care.
Winners of the HTN Health Tech Awards 2026 will be announced during a virtual ceremony on Wednesday 7 October 2026.