A new data and digital academy is set to help the NHS’s workforce in London through data analytic and artificial intelligence (AI) training.
More than 100 staff at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust will be upskilled through the academy on professional apprenticeships, including those across the following roles:
- Frontline medical and clinical
- IT
- Quality assurance
- Administration
- Finance
The apprenticeships will be delivered by Multiverse through its new AI for Business Value programme, which will help learners better understand how to harness AI-driven improvements.
“This initiative empowers our employees with the skills to make better data-driven decisions, positively impacting the patients we serve, saving time in their day, and developing into the practitioners of the future,” said Lewisham and Greenwich’s chief people officer, Meera Nair.
“By unlocking the value of data, we aim to improve patient and community outcomes, both directly and indirectly. Our goal is to enable data-driven decision making to improve pathways, drive efficiencies and identify opportunities.”
The apprenticeships lead at the NHS trust, Alice Long, added: “Our aim is to for our colleagues to have the skills to help them transform the way they work, deliver best in class patient care and foster innovation at the Trust."
The training will be fully funded by the Apprenticeship Levy.
NHS England (NHSE) recently encouraged new graduates to go down the nursing and midwifery routes in anticipation of A-level results being released yesterday.
NHSE’s national lead for apprenticeships and talent for care, Jane Hadfield, commented: “Apprenticeships are embraced across the NHS. They are at the heart of our Long-Term Workforce Plan to put staffing on a sustainable footing and improve patient care.”
Hadfield, who is also a board member at the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, continued: “We have apprenticeship pathways that support people to start with us as a healthcare support workers and work their way up to fully-fledged healthcare professional roles, such as nurses, midwives, radiographers, physiotherapists, dietitians, dental hygienists, and other essential jobs such as safeguarding officers.
“They are brilliant for young people looking to join our workforce and climb the careers ladder.”
In the latest edition of National Health Executive’s digital magazine, Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust’s chairman, Mike Bell, authored a piece on how to address the health and social care workforce drain through strategies for retention. Click here to read more.
Image credit: iStock
