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Last month, our Head of Mental Health, Aileen Jackson, attended the BMJ Digital Health and Innovation Community Conference, a gathering of leading voices shaping the future of healthcare through technology.

In this blog, Aileen reflects on the challenges and opportunities for clinicians, researchers, innovators and digital health experts as they explore how data, design and human insight can transform the way we deliver care.

Attending the BMJ Future Health conference in November was a powerful reminder of the energy, ambition, and complexity driving digital transformation in health and care.

With many of our partners, the Health Innovation Network South London and Innovate UK were proud to join the conversation and showcase Mindset-XR innovations in mental health.

The day was rich with ideas, challenges, and opportunities, and the excitement around XR solutions was clear, with delegates queuing to experience them firsthand.

Here are the key themes I took away, along with insights from our Mindset innovators after sharing their solutions.

At the event, one thing was clear: there’s a real impatience to bring about change. The energy in the room was palpable — an eagerness to move quickly, implement digital solutions, and transform services.

That momentum is exciting, but it can also be a double-edged sword.

When we rush, we risk introducing technology that doesn’t work as intended, doesn’t scale, or fails to integrate with existing systems. Innovation is essential, but it needs to be paired with a commitment to doing it thoughtfully and well.

Moving fast is good — but moving wisely is better.

Another strong theme was empowerment. And it wasn’t just about giving people tools — it was about involving them in creating those tools.

Co-designing with clinicians and people with lived experience, building digital confidence, and ensuring technology is evidence-based are the foundations of meaningful transformation. Digital change isn’t something that can be imposed; it has to be built collaboratively.

The conference also highlighted an important reality: healthcare isn’t solely clinical. In fact, only 52% of the NHS workforce is made up of clinicians. The rest includes professionals in management, HR, training, IT, administration, and more.

For digital interventions to succeed and remain sustainable, every one of these roles must be part of the co-design process.

There was also a clear call for Royal Colleges and training institutions to embed digital skills into medical, nursing, and allied health education. Encouragingly, younger staff — often digital natives — tend to adapt quickly to new technologies. But that doesn’t mean training can be skipped. Upskilling needs to be intentional, inclusive, and continuous.

Ambient voice technology was a big talking point. It has the potential to save time — but what happens with that extra time? Should clinicians use it to see more patients, or spend more time with each one? Is the goal quantity, quality, or a balance of both?

There’s no simple answer, but it’s an important question to ask. Ultimately, technology should help enhance care, not just speed things up.

One clear takeaway for tech providers: stay true to your mission. Keep your focus on solving real challenges and creating meaningful impact for both patients and healthcare professionals. And remember, sustainability matters — financially and operationally — because lasting solutions are what the industry truly needs.

It’s equally important that new technologies integrate smoothly with existing systems. Without interoperability, even the most groundbreaking innovations risk becoming isolated silos.

Health and care systems are naturally risk-averse — and for good reason. But if we want to innovate, we need to get better at taking calculated risks, learning from mistakes, and creating safe spaces to experiment. Innovation without risk is a contradiction.

That said, risk-taking doesn’t mean being reckless. It means being thoughtful about how we frame and implement new ideas.

One of the most resonant themes? The sense that many are waiting for permission to innovate. Real change often comes from the ground up. We need to empower teams to act, not just wait. Bottom-up innovation isn’t just possible — it’s essential.

There’s a cultural shift needed here — from asking “can we?” to saying “how might we?” We need to create environments where people feel confident to try, test, and learn — even if that means getting things wrong sometimes.

There was a strong focus on measuring the impact of digital technology — not just rolling it out. This means looking at real outcomes like better patient care, improved staff satisfaction, and greater system efficiency.

Poor implementation of technologies in the workplace is increasingly linked to staff burnout and even people leaving their jobs.

We also need to manage expectations carefully. Electronic patient records (EPRs) were introduced with the hope of reducing clinical workloads, but the results have been mixed. In some cases, the challenges they were meant to address weren’t clearly defined from the start — and today, many clinicians still feel the administrative burden is heavy.

Digital systems have advanced, however, they must go further to deliver the time efficiencies and cost savings that the health and care sector needs.

The three enablers of successful digital adoption are people, process, and technology. The emphasis must always start with people. Without understanding the human and operational context, even the most advanced tech will fall short.

Process comes next — ensuring that workflows, governance, and culture support the change.

Only then can technology truly enable transformation.

I’ve always known that digital transformation isn’t just about tech — but this event was a powerful reminder of how people, systems, and culture play a part too.

We need to move fast, yes. But we also need to move wisely.

And most importantly, we need to move together.

Mindset innovators in attendance were Cineon, Greener Games,  Intercultural Roots (EcoGPX), Photography Based Therapeutics, Reinhart and Sona.

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By Aileen Jackson, Head of Mental Health, Health Innovation Network South London

Dr Mary Docherty, National Clinical Director for Adult Mental Health NHS England, Consultant General Adult and Liaison Psychiatrist South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, joined our final Mindset-XR roadshow event in London last month.

In a powerful keynote address, Dr Docherty laid bare the pressing challenges facing mental health services across the country such as the £16 billion spent annually on remedial action due to lack of early intervention, and the many billion per year lost to work-related mental health issues.

Dr Docherty’s message was clear – while progress has been made, there are still plenty of opportunities for innovators to apply targeted, inclusive innovation in the mental health space.

Despite increased investment and expanded capacity, the demand for mental health services continues to outpace supply leaving many individuals without timely access to the support they need.

Dr Docherty outlined several promising opportunities for innovators. Among adults experiencing anxiety and depression, nearly 24% of patients in the final quarter of 2024/25 waited more than 90 days between their initial assessment and the start of treatment. This delay highlights a significant gap in timely care.

For children and young people (CYP), the situation is even more concerning. In 2023/24, an estimated 1.7 million children and young people were believed to have a probable mental health disorder. However, only half of them received support through NHS-funded services, indicating a substantial shortfall in provision.

The number of people with severe mental illness (SMI) accessing mental health support has grown by 31% since 2022, driven by both rising demand and some expansion of available services.

But disparities in treatment access and outcomes remain unresolved. For example, people with autism and ADHD continue to face persistent barriers to accessing care.

Also, our ageing population often faces interconnected physical and mental health challenges, adding extra complexity for services that are already under strain.

These challenges highlight the need for service models that are both inclusive and adaptable - something innovators should prioritise during the design phase and in ongoing development.

The Health Innovation Network South London is enthusiastic about the growing role of XR in mental healthcare and is confident that innovators can meet these challenges.

The mental health sector is driving the shift from hospital-based care to community support, with community-led services growing nearly 40% since 2016. However, persistent workforce shortages threaten the sustainability of this progress.

Dr Docherty noted that one significant opportunity for innovators lies in tackling the high vacancy rate in mental health nursing, which is currently 10.2% which is well above the NHS average of 5.9%.

While acknowledging that retention challenges, particularly among specialist staff, further compromise continuity and quality of care, Dr Docherty emphasised that the practitioner is, in essence, the therapeutic tool. This reality makes the role inherently emotionally demanding.

Consequently, staff wellbeing has become a critical concern, with rising levels of burnout and emotional exhaustion reported across the sector. These pressures impact not only individual practitioners but also the overall resilience and effectiveness of mental health services.

So, it’s encouraging to see Mindset innovators developing solutions for staff training and wellbeing, helping keep skilled professionals in the workforce.

Mental health outcomes continue to show significant disparities across different populations, highlighting the need for more equitable approaches to care.

Individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) consistently experience poorer health outcomes and face a widening mortality gap compared to the general population.

Inequalities are further compounded for people living in deprived areas and those from global majority communities, who often encounter barriers to accessing mental health services.

And mental ill health doesn’t just affect individuals - it’s creating wider social challenges. It’s a growing reason why people are leaving or unable to stay in work, reducing productivity and putting extra strain on public services and the economy.

To tackle these impacts, innovations that recognise and reduce health inequalities across the UK are therefore considered highly valuable.

To conclude, Dr. Docherty drew attention to the forthcoming Modern Service Framework (MSF), which will inform where innovation can drive progress. She emphasised that this will be an important document for innovators to watch in 2026.

Dr Docherty then went on to ask innovators to consider the priorities of the 10-Year Health Plan – community, digitalisation and prevention - and how their work could address six key areas:

Dr Docherty concluded with a rallying call to innovators, emphasising the many opportunities to make a meaningful impact in mental health. Urging innovators to focus their efforts on closing key gaps in the system including gaps in treatment, capacity, prevention, efficacy and wellbeing.

When pitching to commissioners, Dr Docherty encouraged innovators to get briefed on the NHS’s current needs, to speak their language, to lead with the problem they are aiming to solve, to include evaluation, - and to remain “wildly ambitious”.

Mindset innovators in attendance were Aerial Icon, Borderpoint Films, CrossSense, EcoGPX Ltd, GoodWith, Greener Games, Haven XR, Holo-Log, InsideOut, Neurotech, Phase Space, Photography Based Therapeutics, PWFL, Reneural, Tend VR, XR Therapeutics

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