Oxford University Hospitals shortlisted for the HSJ award for digital radiology project

Oxford University Hospitals (OUH) NHS Foundation Trust has been shortlisted for Health Service Journal (HSJ) Digital Awards 2026, recognising its work to improve patient safety and efficiency through better use of digital systems.

The Trust's radiology referral improvement project, "Optimising EPR Radiology Requesting and Endorsement: Streamlining End‑to‑End Digital Pathways for Safer, More Efficient Patient Care," has been shortlisted in the Outstanding Achievement in EPR Implementation and Optimisation category.

The shortlisted project focuses on improving how radiology scans are requested, reported, and acted on within the Trust’s electronic patient record (EPR), with the aim of ensuring that the digital system support clinical decision‑making, reduce unnecessary workload, and improve patient safety.

Project lead Payam Mohaghegh, Digital Integration Architect and Order Communications lead for EPR at OUH, explained the shortlisted project:

"We are a mature EPR Trust and have surpassed the EPR implementation change management tipping point – rather than being driven by the project team, change is now initiated by clinical staff seeking improvements.

"As part of this project, a national clinical decision support tool, based on Royal College of Radiologists’ guidance, was embedded in EPR. This helps clinicians request the most appropriate scan for each patient, reducing unnecessary imaging and supporting faster diagnosis.

"The project also introduced new safeguards to prevent test results being missed when staff leave the Trust, with radiology reports now automatically redirected to a nominated colleague. In addition, changes were made to reduce repetitive admin for our extremely busy trauma teams by automatically excluding certain low‑risk X‑ray results for signing off.

"Imaging for common conditions such as stroke and sepsis has also been streamlined by embedding scans into digital care pathways, helping ensure patients receive the right investigations quickly and consistently.

"The HSJ shortlisting reflects Oxford University Hospitals’ continued commitment to using digital technology like EPR to improve care for patients and support staff across the Trust."

Ben Attwood, Chief Digital and Information Officer at OUH, said: "Congratulations to our EPR implementation team and the Radiology team for this recognition. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes to ensure that our hospitals and services run smoothly and effectively, providing excellent and safe patient care and continually improving our services. This is a great example of one of such projects.

"Well done, and thank you to the colleagues involved for all that you do. Good luck at the awards ceremony."

The stage two judging for the HSJ Digital Awards 2026 will commence on Wednesday 1 April and the award ceremony is on Tuesday 19 May.