Patients visiting Royal Surrey’s Emergency Department (ED) are now benefiting from cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help diagnose urgent conditions quickly and accurately.
Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust is at the forefront of adopting AI in healthcare, joining a select group of Trusts across the UK to implement an AI tool in urgent and emergency care settings to assist with reading chest X-rays.
The Annalise.ai chest X-ray tool uses AI to examine chest X-rays and identify up to 124 possible health issues in patients’ lungs, including serious conditions like cancer and collapsed lungs. By notifying medical teams about potential problems, it helps doctors make faster, more accurate decisions, allowing for earlier detection and quicker treatment of life-threatening conditions.
Following its successful rollout at Royal Surrey for GP-referred patients in 2024, the technology was introduced into the ED on 11 March 2025, marking the second phase of its implementation. The AI tool is considered likely to be extremely valuable when used in this high pressured, busy setting. Mike Jones, Royal Surrey’s Radiology AI Lead, and Dr Alex Janusz, Specialist Trainee in Emergency Medicine, worked together to integrate it in ED and anticipate that over 40 patients a day – more than 14,000 annually – will benefit from this advancement.
Speaking about the groundbreaking tool, Dr Alex Janusz said: “It’s been incredible to see how this technology works alongside clinicians. It’s like having an expert radiologist in the room, helping to confirm your assessments and sometimes even identifying anomalies that might prompt a second look. It’s an invaluable addition to clinical decision-making.”
Mike Jones, Royal Surrey’s Radiology AI Lead, believes there are significant benefits for patients in improving the efficiency of their care. He said: “With this technology, conditions that need further attention are flagged instantly, meaning patients can either undergo the necessary tests right away or be sent home with a prompt follow-up appointment.”
This innovation marks a major step forward in Royal Surrey’s commitment to improving patient care through the use of advanced technology.
Royal Surrey is part of a chest imaging network, the Surrey, Sussex and Frimley Imaging Network, which is a partnership of NHS Trusts from across Surrey, Sussex, and Frimley working together to use this technology for the benefit of patients.
