A Digital Framework for AHPs

Technology is integral to realizing the goals of the NHS Long Term Plan, enabling clinicians to fully utilize their skills, reducing administrative burdens, fostering research, and driving service transformation. This digital framework serves as a practical guide for commissioners and managers to fulfill the commitments outlined in Personalised Health and Care 2020, ensuring patient records are digital, interoperable, and aligned with strategic initiatives such as Local Digital Roadmaps, the Digital Maturity Assessment, and The Future of Healthcare: Our Vision for Digital, Data and Technology in Health and Care (2018).

Grounded in national policies, insights from the National Digital AHPs Steering Group, and regional consultations with Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), this framework identifies three key ambitions for achieving digitally mature AHP services:

1. Digitally Ready AHP Services
2. Digitally Mature AHP Services
3. Data-Enabled AHP Services

Designed for AHPs, AHP service managers, and leaders across health and social care systems, this framework supports them to:

• Understand and contextualize strategic digital developments for AHPs.
• Actively engage AHPs in local, regional, and national digital strategies.
• Utilize a customizable framework tailored to specific professional, clinical, and regional needs.
• Leverage operational examples and case studies to inspire the AHP workforce.
• Drive innovation and support system-wide pressures with new, efficient ways of working.

This structured approach empowers AHPs, their leaders, and system stakeholders to evaluate current levels of digital maturity and take actionable steps toward achieving these ambitions, ultimately advancing patient care and service delivery.