AI in radiology is growing. The next step is transforming the workflow around it.
The latest workforce census from The Royal College of Radiologists, recently featured by Digital Health, highlights an encouraging trend: AI adoption in radiology continues to increase as NHS organisations seek new ways to improve productivity and manage growing demand.
It’s a positive sign that healthcare is embracing AI. But as we read the findings, one thought kept coming back to us.
One of the most interesting themes emerging from the RCR findings is the opportunity to support the operational processes that underpin patient care. Every referral, appointment and clinical handover forms part of a wider care pathway, where hundreds of individual activities work together to move patients through the healthcare system. Improving these workflows not only helps ensure patients receive the right care at the right time but also releases valuable clinical capacity for the work that matters most.
As the Royal College of Radiologists points out, administrative and operational workflows remain an area where AI has significant untapped potential.
We believe this is where some of healthcare’s greatest productivity gains still lie.
Every improvement in a care pathway has the potential to make a difference. When AI, intelligent automation and workflow orchestration are applied to the operational processes that support patient care, NHS organisations can reduce repetitive administrative work, improve consistency and give clinicians more time to focus on patients.
Turning opportunity into practice
The good news is that this isn’t simply a future ambition. It’s already happening.
One example is the Radiology Referrals Vetting AI Agent developed by SS&C Blue Prism and deployed at Sandwell & West Birmingham NHS Trust. The solution demonstrates how AI can support imaging referral vetting while keeping clinicians firmly in control.
Rather than replacing clinical judgement, the AI agent works alongside existing radiology teams. It reviews incoming referrals, checks clinical information against local policies and guidelines, identifies duplicate requests and prepares structured recommendations for clinician review. Straightforward referrals are progressed in seconds, while more complex cases are escalated with the relevant clinical context attached, ensuring governance and human oversight remain at the centre of every decision.
The results demonstrate what’s possible when AI is integrated into a connected clinical workflow rather than a standalone tool.
At Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, the solution is expected to return approximately 3,000 clinical hours every year, reduce referral processing time by 75%, autonomously resolve 80–90% of imaging referrals, and reduce GP feedback times to under one hour. Most importantly, those hours are being returned to radiologists so they can spend more time on complex reporting, urgent cases and patient care.
If you’d like to see how the solution works in practice, you can watch the Imaging Vetting AI Agent demonstration and explore the Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust case study.
Looking beyond individual AI projects
As AI adoption continues to accelerate across the NHS, the conversation is naturally evolving.
Rather than asking “Where can we use AI?”, healthcare organisations are increasingly asking “Where can AI, automation and intelligent workflows help us deliver better care?”
For us, that’s where the greatest opportunity lies.
Perhaps the most interesting question is no longer how many AI solutions an organisation has adopted, but how those technologies are supporting everyday clinical practice. When operational processes become more connected and efficient, clinicians gain more time to focus on patients and organisations are better placed to meet growing demand.
Whether it’s imaging referrals, outpatient pathways, waiting list management or clinical administration, the most impactful innovations are those that connect seamlessly into existing care pathways and help healthcare professionals spend less time on repetitive tasks and more time caring for patients.
Continue the conversation
If you’re exploring how AI, intelligent automation and workflow orchestration could support your radiology or diagnostic services, we’d love to continue the conversation.
Visit our NHS Healthcare page to discover how Digital Workforce is supporting NHS organisations in delivering more efficient, connected care through intelligent automation, AI and agentic AI. You can also join our NHS Community, where healthcare leaders exchange real-world case studies, practical insights and experiences from across the NHS.
If you’re looking to deepen your understanding of AI and healthcare automation, explore agentacademy.ai for on-demand learning, webinars and practical resources.
Later in autumn, we’ll host a dedicated webinar exploring how AI agents and intelligent automation can support imaging referral vetting and broader diagnostic pathways. We’ll share practical NHS experiences, lessons learned and discuss how organisations can identify where these technologies could deliver the greatest impact.
We also offer NHS organisations a complimentary imaging referral workshop and opportunity assessment.
Together, we’ll explore your current referral workflow, identify opportunities to reduce administrative burden and estimate how much clinical time could be released through AI-supported imaging referral vetting. Whether you’re just starting to explore AI or already have initiatives underway, the workshop provides a practical way to understand where the greatest opportunities may exist within your organisation.
If this topic resonates with you, we’d love to continue the conversation. Drop us an email 🙏🏼