While waiting list validation ensures patients are accurately prioritised for care, the period between validation and treatment is often overlooked.
In our latest episode of EBO’s Digital Dose podcast, Richard Samuel, Healthcare Director at EBO, and Liz Ashall-Payne, Founder and CEO of ORCHA, explore how digital health tools and AI can help patients “wait well” while supporting NHS services at scale.
Why Waiting Lists Are More Than Numbers
The NHS is facing unprecedented complexity with over seven million active pathways on elective waiting lists. Richard Samuel explains that this is more than just a statistic; it’s millions of overlapping, confusing journeys for patients. Each individual is juggling multiple conditions, appointments, and specialists.
Beyond managing numbers, Richard stresses that the waiting period can be used to educate, empower, and prepare patients for care:
“Silence has consequences. When people don’t hear from the NHS, they reach out, often unnecessarily, increasing workforce workload. Digital can help maintain compassionate communication at scale.”
The "Waiting Well" Toolkit
Liz Ashall-Payne introduces the concept of “waiting well,” a proactive approach that turns waiting into a productive and supportive experience. The key is personalising care through digital tools.
By matching patients with tools that address their specific challenges, such as pain management, anxiety, stress, or mobility, we can ensure people are better prepared for their treatment, improving outcomes while reducing unnecessary strain on services.
Why Personalisation Is Key
Healthcare isn’t one-size-fits-all. Liz emphasises that patients’ needs vary widely, from neurodiversity to cultural preferences and language requirements. Quality-assured digital tools can bridge this gap.
“Everybody has a touch point in this country with the NHS… if you have neurodiversity, you want something that meets your personal requirement. The beauty is, that’s already out there. The challenge is getting the right technology into the hands of the person who needs it.”
ORCHA’s system matches patients with technologies they are most likely to engage with. Personal preferences, like avoiding social networks or using tools at the point of crisis, are considered. This level of customisation ensures patients feel supported in a way that works for them.
Waiting List Validation Re-imagined
Conversational AI enables the NHS to scale personalised engagement, keeping patients informed and supported during long waits. Richard Samuel explains how AI acts as an extension of clinical staff rather than a replacement.
“AI enables the NHS to have human-like two-way conversations with thousands of people simultaneously, collecting data on symptoms, updating records, and even directing patients to alternative services where appropriate.”
The technology adapts to tone, language, and literacy, ensuring inclusivity. If a patient shows concern or frustration, AI can route them to a live human conversation, bridging the gap between automated engagement and personal care.
Real-Life Benefits
The concept of waiting well goes beyond technology.
The challenge is integration into everyday NHS practice. Liz urges action:
“This isn’t about replacing face-to-face care; it’s about giving the right intervention to people based on what they want.”
Both Liz and Richard emphasised that the real power of waiting well lies in turning downtime into proactive, personalised care.
Liz highlighted that by giving patients access to safe, evaluated digital health tools while they wait, they can manage pain, anxiety, or other conditions, continue with their daily lives, and arrive at treatment better prepared, reducing cancelled appointments and improving outcomes. She also noted the system-wide benefits, such as fewer GP visits and less pressure on hospitals, because patients are supported independently yet safely.
Richard added that EBO’s conversational AI creates empathetic, adaptive interactions that respond to emotions like anxiety or frustration, adjusting literacy levels, language, and engagement style to each individual. Available 24/7 through multiple channels, this approach extends staff capacity without replacing the need for face-to-face care.
Richard emphasises that success is measured by patient outcomes and system efficiency:
“Success is patient-centered, proactive care. Digital therapeutics integrated across the pathway can reduce unnecessary strain, improve outcomes, and deliver real value for the NHS.”
Together, their solutions ensure consistent, reliable, inclusive, and patient-centered support, ultimately enhancing outcomes, optimising NHS resources, and making waiting periods productive rather than passive.
There's a secure, NHS-trusted way...
Ultimately, beyond validation is about connection, personalisation, and proactive engagement. By combining the right technology, behavioural insight and patient-centred design, the NHS can move from one-off validation to continuous, compassionate engagement, making every interaction count, every pause purposeful, and every person feel seen, supported and ready even before their treatment begins.
EBO’s Waiting List Validation solution exemplifies this approach. As Richard explains, EBO designs curated, empathetic, and adaptive digital conversations using conversational AI, built specifically for healthcare. These AI-led interactions are not generic chatbots; they are intentionally crafted to feel human, supportive and safe. Using natural language processing, EBO recognises emotional cues like anxiety, frustration, or confusion, and adapts its tone and responses in real time. If someone seems distressed, EBO can immediately offer a warm handover to a human clinician, because technology should never remove the option for real human contact.
“We will never forget anything. We will never lose patience. We will always stay within that conversation in an empathetic and engaging way.”
