United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust has received £250,000 to invest in digital transformation.

The Trust is one of 32 NHS organisations to receive support in the second wave of the Digital Aspirants programme, which will see it supported on its transformation journey.

The money will be used to develop the Trust's digital strategy and business case to deliver an electronic health record - which will transform how it works to provide outstanding care to Lincolnshire patients.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, health and care organisations have used digital technology to support the delivery of safe, high quality care.

In Lincolnshire this has included the use of video and telephone consultations where appropriate to avoid patients having to travel to a local hospital for an appointment.

Plans and funding are also in place around introducing electronic health records and electronic medicines management systems across the Trust, which will help to improve patient experience and safety. Being part of the Digital Aspirants programme will help this very important piece of work to progress.

Director of Finance and Digital, Paul Matthew, said: "We have learnt so much during the COVID-19 pandemic and this has resulted in a lot of digital transformation already taking place across the Trust. By being part of the Digital Aspirants programme, it will enable us to do even more. This is great news for our brilliant teams and also for all of our patients across the Trust at Lincoln, Pilgrim, Grantham and Louth hospitals."

Matthew Gould, Chief Executive of NHSX, said: "We want to see all parts of the NHS join the digital transformation journey. Digitising frontline services is at the heart of NHSX and it is the bedrock upon which we are continuing to build the capability to deliver healthcare that is safe, efficient and fit for today's needs."

Health Secretary Matt Hancock unveiled the second wave of 32 NHS Trusts to be supported on their transformation journeys as Digital Aspirants.

Seven trusts will receive up to £6m over the next three years to help deliver their digital ambitions - whilst a further 25 trusts (including ULHT) will receive seed funding of £250,000 to develop their digital strategy and business cases.

The Digital Aspirant programme supports organisations to deliver a set of core capabilities and is designed to reduce the gap between the levels of digitisation across the NHS.

This latest announcement follows a first round of funding for 27 trusts that joined the programme last year.