Professor Jacqui Cooper explores how Greater Manchester is using digital and data to improve NHS productivity, support better clinical decision-making and deliver more joined-up care through the GM Care Record.

The NHS is being asked to do more than ever against the backdrop of rising demand, workforce pressures, and an expectation to improve outcomes within constrained resources. National policy is clear: productivity must improve, with targets of around two percent annual gains supported by digital and technological innovation.

At the same time, the NHS 10 Year Health Plan sets out a decisive shift towards a “digital by default” service, moving care closer to communities and enabling more proactive, preventative models of care.

Digital and data are essential enablers of how the NHS will deliver these ambitions in practice. Greater Manchester offers a compelling example of what this looks like at scale.

GM Care Record: unlocking productivity in practice

Launched at pace at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, the GM Care Record (GMCR) brought together patient information from health and care services across Greater Manchester – previously held in 10 separate local systems – into a single, secure record, giving authorised professionals access to the information they need to provide safer, more joined-up care.

This work is delivered through partnerships between NHS organisations, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, academia, industry and communities. Health Innovation Manchester, part of the Health Innovation Network, helps bring these partners together to develop, test and scale approaches that improve outcomes, increase productivity and support economic growth. Health Innovation Manchester, has driven a 20 percent year on year increase in usage.

For frontline staff, the impact is immediate. Instead of logging into multiple systems or chasing information across organisations, clinicians can access what they need in a single screen, which supports faster, more informed decisions and reduces duplication. Clinical teams have the right information, in the right place, at the right time in the care pathway.

This shift is already delivering measurable impact. In early 2026, over 500,000 patient records were accessed in a single month by nearly 30,000 health and care professionals, reflecting growing adoption and embedding the GMCR into everyday clinical workflows. This releases over £18m savings in clinical time alone.

Supporting better decisions at the point of care

New data integrations, such as radiology images and genomic test results for cancer care, are now visible directly within the GMCR. Clinicians can access critical insights alongside the rest of the patient record, reducing fragmentation and supporting more confident decision-making in areas such as cancer care.

Improving coordination and reducing avoidable demand

The GMCR also supports coordinated end-of-life care through shared care planning. Evidence shows that around 77 percent of patients with an Electronic Palliative Coordination System (EPaCCS) care plan in Greater Manchester died in their preferred place of care, compared with 54 percent nationally for those without such plans (based on VOICES survey comparator).

This demonstrates how joined-up data not only improves patient and carer experience but also helps reduce crisis-driven use of urgent and acute services, delivering both quality and productivity benefits.

Enabling safer, more efficient care beyond hospital settings

Shared data is also transforming care in community settings. Community pharmacists can access real-time information on medications, allergies, discharge summaries and care plans, supporting safer prescribing and more effective services such as Pharmacy First.

As adoption grows across primary, secondary, community and pharmacy settings, the GMCR is enabling a more integrated, system-wide approach to care delivery.

Delivering national priorities through local change

Greater Manchester’s experience reflects a broader national reality. While most NHS organisations now use digital systems, the real opportunity lies in better integration, connecting data across organisations and care settings. This joined up data can then be used directly within clinical workflows, and for secondary purposes such as service planning, research and innovation.

Three lessons from our region’s implementation of the GMCR are key:

· Digital and data must enable new ways of working – not simply digitise existing processes

· Collaboration across systems is essential – supported by shared governance, trust, and infrastructure

· Public trust matters – with patient and public involvement playing a vital role in shaping how data is used safely and transparently.

Delivering this change at scale requires structured support to spread, adopt, and evaluate what works and health innovation networks play a critical role in this process. By bridging national priorities and local delivery, networks help ensure that innovations such as shared care records are not isolated successes, but scalable, repeatable models that benefit patients across the country.

Looking ahead

The NHS can achieve its productivity ambitions through combining digital and data-driven approaches with collaboration, trust, and strong implementation.

Greater Manchester shows what is possible when these elements come together – more informed decision-making, better coordinated care and use of resources, a deep understanding of population health needs, and an ability to deliver data-driven innovation at scale.

The opportunity now is to build on this momentum, scaling what works, sharing learning across systems, and ensuring that every part of the NHS can benefit.

This article was originally published by the Health Innovation Network on 23 July 2026.