AXREM Imaging IT Special Focus Group publishes new guidance to support modern, connected imaging services across the NHS

The AXREM Imaging IT Special Focus Group (SFG) has published two new guidance documents to support the safe, effective, and sustainable delivery of imaging services across the NHS and wider UK healthcare system.

The publications - “Alignment to the NHS 10 Year Health Plan: Enabling the Analogue to Digital Shift through Integration, Interoperability, and Modern Imaging IT” and “Cloud-Based Medical Voice Recognition and Ambient Clinical Documentation Position Statement” set out the latest insights from AXREM members on how digital infrastructure, interoperability, cloud technologies, and AI-enabled tools can accelerate transformation in diagnostic imaging.

Together, they provide practical guidance for NHS organisations responding to rising demand, workforce pressures, and rapidly evolving technologies.

Supporting NHS transformation through imaging IT

With diagnostic imaging underpinning around 90% of NHS patient pathways, modern imaging IT is critical to delivering faster, safer, and more connected care.

The Imaging IT Alignment Paper highlights the role of platforms such as PACS, RIS, AI-enabled tools, and cloud-hosted services in enabling:

- Faster and more reliable diagnostic pathways.

- Seamless interoperability and data sharing.

- Greater productivity through automation and intelligent workflows.

- Enhanced resilience and scalability of imaging infrastructure.

It emphasises the need for nationally aligned interoperability based on open standards, ensuring imaging data can flow securely across organisations.

Enabling confident adoption of cloud and AI

As cloud adoption accelerates, the guidance calls for clearer, more consistent approaches to deployment, including defined responsibilities across trusts, suppliers, and cloud providers, and stronger alignment on cyber security and resilience.

The second publication reflects the rapid evolution of voice recognition into ambient, AI-enabled clinical documentation. These technologies are helping reduce administrative burden and enable clinicians to focus more on patient care.

It highlights alignment with national policy, the growing role of procurement frameworks, and the importance of maintaining clinical accountability, safety, and transparency.

A coordinated approach to future imaging services

Across both documents, AXREM emphasises that innovation must be underpinned by strong governance, clear regulation, and robust information governance.

The Imaging IT SFG continues to advocate for a coordinated national approach, including:

- A national imaging IT standards framework.

- A shared cloud readiness and responsibility model.

- Structured interoperability and integration guidance.

- A clear pathway for safe AI adoption.

- Greater integration with patient-facing platforms such as the NHS App.

These priorities are intended to reduce delivery risk, improve consistency, and accelerate the transition to a fully connected, digital imaging ecosystem.

AXREM Imaging IT SFG Convenor, Tony Rogers said: “Imaging services are under unprecedented pressure and the NHS cannot deliver faster, safer, more connected care without the digital foundations that modern imaging IT provides. These publications reflect the collective expertise of AXREM members and our shared commitment to supporting the NHS as it moves from analogue and siloed systems toward fully interoperable, cloud‑enabled, AI‑supported diagnostics.

The transition we are describing is not theoretical, it is already happening across trusts, networks and clinical departments. But progress is uneven and too often organisations face avoidable complexity, uncertainty and duplication. By setting out clear, nationally aligned guidance on interoperability, cloud deployment, cyber security and the safe adoption of AI and ambient clinical documentation, we aim to give NHS teams the confidence and clarity they need to modernise at pace.”

AXREM CEO, Sally Edgington said: “These publications provide timely, practical guidance to help the NHS strengthen the digital foundations that modern imaging services rely on. With imaging central to most patient pathways, nationally aligned approaches to interoperability, cloud deployment, cyber resilience and safe AI adoption are essential. AXREM members have drawn on real‑world experience to offer clarity where organisations often face complexity and inconsistency. We remain committed to working with national partners to ensure imaging IT is recognised as a strategic enabler of faster, safer and more connected care across the UK.”

About AXREM Imaging IT Special Focus Group

The AXREM Imaging IT Special Focus Group represents suppliers of the digital technologies underpinning modern imaging services, including PACS, RIS, AI solutions, and cloud-enabled platforms.

AXREM members work in partnership with the NHS and wider healthcare community to support safe innovation, improve patient outcomes, and enable sustainable service transformation through digital technology.

AXREM Imaging IT SFG documents are available on the AXREM website: https://www.axrem.org.uk/pacs-ris/