The NHS faces a pivotal moment. The government’s 10-Year plan outlines three major shifts to secure long-term sustainability: moving care from hospitals into communities, shifting from analogue to digital systems, and transitioning from reactive to proactive care.
It is clear that our healthcare system must evolve beyond reactive treatment models, and quickly. Proactive care is an essential reconfiguration of how health services are accessed and delivered. It means anticipating health needs, acting earlier and preventing illness before it escalates. Technology is key to unlocking this model. We must equip both patients and providers with the tools to act sooner, smarter and more efficiently in support of a sustainable NHS and a healthier nation.
How emerging technologies are reshaping proactive care
Central to the NHS Plan is the ambition to get upstream of ill-health and use predictive technologies to guide earlier intervention. Where reactive care waits for a condition to emerge, proactive care harnesses data to prevent it.
This transformation is already taking shape. Voice-enabled AI tools like Surgery Intellect, powered by Tortus, can transcribe consultation notes in real time, reducing the administrative burden on GPs and freeing up time for meaningful clinical conversations. Empowering care through technology that listens, tools like this improve the quality of interactions that are vital for identifying early warning signs, symptoms that might otherwise be missed in a rushed or paperwork-heavy consultation.
Beyond documentation, predictive analytics and genomic technologies could offer a powerful new lens through which clinicians can view patient risk. The NHS plans to implement universal newborn genomic testing and population-based polygenic risk scoring, enabling earlier diagnosis and tailored intervention strategies. In practical terms, this means patients at high risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer or diabetes could be flagged for preventative support long before symptoms appear.
Empowering patients to self-serve and seek timely, proactive care
Proactive care also requires a change in how patients interact with the system. Too often, people encounter long phone queues, misdirection or simply give up trying to access help. The result? Missed opportunities for early intervention and unnecessary escalation to more costly, acute settings.
Digital care navigation tools like Surgery Assist are changing that dynamic. By offering 24/7 access to triage and administrative support, the chatbot directs patients to the right service the first time, whether it’s GP, pharmacy, or self-care. It can reduce inbound patient-led workload by 30%, easing reception pressure, and improve equity through dynamic language translation. By intercepting and resolving many appointment-related queries, this technology also helps reduce missed appointments. In 2021/2022, NHS England reported the average nine-minute GP face-to-face consultation costed £42. Based on this figure, in 2023 “Did Not Attends” cost the East of England “well over £7 million” in the month of October alone (NHS England, 2023)1.
By introducing these care navigation tools into practices, even marginal gains here represent meaningful savings and a clear return on investment. Perhaps more importantly, you can unlock equitable patient access through technology by empowering patients to self-serve. With access via multiple channels and the ability to communicate in preferred languages, digital tools dismantle traditional barriers that often exclude marginalised groups. And when more people get timely help, pressure is taken off urgent services, ensuring that reactive care is reserved for those who truly need it.
Visibility that drives proactive care at scale
Proactive care cannot rely on gut feeling. It requires system-wide visibility. This means the ability to see what’s happening across appointments, communications, digital channels and staffing in real time. That visibility enables earlier action, better planning and targeted interventions where they’re needed most.
Real-time dashboards like Surgery Insights that collate practice-level data—spanning online consultations, telephone interactions, chatbot engagement, and workforce availability—are providing this clarity. With these insights, practices and PCNs can spot trends earlier, whether it’s rising DNAs, increased demand for admin help, or gaps in care continuity. This data also supports resource optimisation. For instance, identifying underutilised clinical staff during quieter hours or recognising when phone traffic demands additional reception support. While GP practice data can unlock operational efficiency, these adjustments have a direct impact on a practice’s ability to offer timely, proactive care.
An integrated, digital foundation for proactive care
All of this is underpinned by the infrastructure patients engage with daily: phones, websites and appointment systems. The NHS Plan calls for a “digital front door” to healthcare, supported by Cloud telephony, automation and integrated platforms that connect services across ICBs, PCNs and federations. Telephony still plays a crucial role. Smart systems that offer call-backs, multi-language options and automated routing not only improve patient experience but also reduce stress on staff. These systems, especially when integrated with electronic health records, enable a seamless flow of information and support continuity of care, both of which are essential for proactive care.
Critically, automation within these systems is not about replacing humans, it’s about removing the avoidable admin that keeps clinicians from doing what only they can do: care. When technology supports rather than obstructs, the system becomes more sustainable, and more capable of early, effective intervention.
Proactive care for a healthier, sustainable NHS
With the right technology in place, practices can identify risk earlier, reduce barriers to access, and reallocate time to where it matters most: patient relationships and clinical judgement.
From AI-driven documentation to intelligent triage and real-time data insights, these innovations are not simply about operational efficiency, they’re enablers of a system-wide shift. A shift that reduces avoidable hospitalisations, cuts unnecessary costs and builds a healthier population.
As the NHS continues its digital transformation, the invitation to practices and systems is clear: lean into the tools that support early action. Proactive care isn’t just better for patients, it’s critical for the future of healthcare.
Use technology to predict, personalise and prevent.