Making the NHS design system fit for the future/in /by

Tero Väänänen explains why the NHS design system exists and why it plays an important role in fulfilling the 10-year health plan. He also describes recent changes to the frontend code behind the design system, and why it is important for teams to adopt them now.
 

The NHS is moving from analogue to digital, and the NHS design system plays a critical role in making sure that shift results in accessible and usable digital products. 

It does this by giving teams across the system a shared set of tools and standards, which reduce the effort needed to deliver digital products and services.

Transforming data into action for rare and congenital conditions/in /by

Sarah and Steven celebrate 10 years of the National Congenital Conditions and Rare Disease Registration Service (NCARDRS).

This year the National Congenital Conditions and Rare Disease Registration Service (NCARDRS), part of NHS England’s the National Disease Registration Service (NDRS), celebrates 10 years of advancing understanding and care for people affected by congenital and rare conditions. Reflecting on the past decade, we have come so far in using data to make a tangible difference and achieved so much, yet there remains much more still to do.

Cyber first responders: Strengthening NHS defences in the digital age/in /by

Martin Jarvis, Incident Management Lead in our Cyber Security Operations Centre (CSOC), explains how the preparedness of individual NHS organisations, working alongside central response capabilities, forms a protective partnership to keep the NHS safe.

Driving forward the NHS 10 Year Health Plan’s commitment to move 'from analogue to digital' means cyber security is more critical than ever. As we build a digitally-enabled health service, where patients can access care 24/7 through the NHS App and other digital channels, robust cyber defences are essential for patient safety and continuity of care.

Failure isn’t the end – it’s where better services begin/in /by

Liz Glidewell explains why failing a GDS service assessment is a normal part of the improvement process – and how she supported the Be Part of Research team through multiple assessments to build a better, more accessible service for their users.

Government and NHS services have a duty to work for everyone, including those with low digital confidence and non-digital users. This is why services need to pass a GDS service assessment.

It’s not unusual for a service to fail its first assessment. But what happens next?

An easier way to manage vaccinations in schools/in /by

Helen Pitts shares a video walk-though of the new Manage vaccinations in schools (Mavis) service, which helps those involved in school vaccinations handle the challenging logistics of vaccinating hundreds of children in a single day.

Manage vaccinations in schools (shortened to Mavis) is a digital service we're building to support vaccination providers around the country, so that they’re easier to manage and more effective.

Vaccination providers visit schools to deliver vaccinations to hundreds of children in a single day. This can require a great deal of planning, preparing, and coordination. 

Why we are reinvesting in the NHS prototype kit/in /by

Frankie and Mike explain why we revived the NHS prototype kit, the benefits of prototyping in code and how digital teams in the NHS can get started using it.

The NHS prototype kit was first developed in 2019 to make it easier for digital teams to rapidly design and test new digital services. It was inspired by the GOV.UK Prototype Kit and builds on the legacy of open-source public-sector design tools in the UK.

A digital-first approach to patient communications/in /by

Joe and Pete explain the greater emphasis being placed on digital patient messaging across the NHS and the potential to provide a more seamless experience for patients, reduce the number of missed appointments and save the NHS money. 

This week, the Secretary of State announced the start of our journey to becoming a "digital first NHS" – here is what it means for you.

In other aspects of our lives, it's second nature to receive messages digitally. Think online bank statements, email receipts for our online shopping or text messages confirming our home deliveries have arrived. But for various reasons, the NHS has found this challenging, and we still send out millions of letters to patients each year.

How to stay one step ahead of a cyber attack/in /by

Ryan Lee explains how our Threat Operations team use a unique network of intelligence and techniques to detect advanced cyber threats before they can cause harm – and what everyone working in the NHS should do to help.

If you worked for the NHS 10 years ago, you would have heard cyber security spoken about quite differently. It was often seen as an IT issue, lumped into conversations about software updates and internet usage. Now, cyber is rightly understood to be a patient safety issue.

As the cyber threat has become more sophisticated, so has our cyber security approach for the NHS. We have evolved significantly in recent years in response to the growing threat. My team’s specialist work in threat operations is one example of this, and just one part of our central cyber security defence approach.

Designing for inclusion: What we learned at Google/in /by

Karol Kuczera and Max Marulli De Barletta reflect on their visit to Google’s Accessibility Discovery Centre and how inclusive technology can enable more equitable access to health, education and broader social participation.

In today’s NHS, digital tools are central to how we deliver care, share information, and empower people to manage their health. But for those facing barriers to access – whether through disability, language or low digital confidence – these tools can just as easily widen inequalities as reduce them.

Mitigating the risks of domestic abuse/in /by

Emma Swift and Zuzanna Lito explain how we've updated the NHS service standard to make sure teams building online services are more aware and responsive to the risks of domestic abuse and coercive control.

The NHS service standard helps teams build and run digital services that meet users’ needs. It's designed to improve patients’ care and experience when engaging with the NHS online.

The service standard has recently undergone some small but significant updates. The new updates are designed to make sure that teams building online services are more aware of and responsive to the risks of domestic abuse and coercive control.