Meeting rising patient demand while maintaining safe, timely access is one of the defining challenges for primary care systems across the NHS. For integrated care boards, the question is not just whether individual practices can cope, but whether a scalable, data-driven model can deliver consistent results across an entire programme.

Derby & Derbyshire ICB partnered with Anima Health to deploy AI-powered triage across 9 GP practices, covering approximately 115,770 registered patients. In just over ten weeks, the programme processed 51,058 patient requests—delivering same-day action for over 80% of cases and resolving 72% of all requests same-day.

The Challenge: Scaling Access Across a Diverse System

Before the programme launched, practices across Derbyshire faced a set of challenges common to primary care networks nationwide.

• Inconsistent patient access: no standardised way for patients to request care online, leading to variation in how quickly and effectively demand was managed.

• GP bottleneck: the default model funnelled the majority of requests to GPs, regardless of clinical need, limiting capacity for the patients who needed it most.

• Upcoming contract requirements: the April 2026 GP contract mandates same-day access for all clinically urgent patients, with no caps on online requests—requiring a system that could handle uncapped demand safely.

• Limited system-wide visibility: the ICB lacked a unified way to track demand, response times, and workforce delegation across its digital triage cohort.

DDICB needed a partner that could deliver not just a tool for individual practices, but a programme-level platform with the data infrastructure to support ICB oversight, contract compliance, and continuous improvement.

The Solution: AI Triage at Scale

Anima’s AI-powered triage platform was deployed across 10 practices.

• Structured patient requests: patients submit requests online, which are triaged by Anima’s AI to categorise by condition, urgency, and appropriate clinical pathway.

• Automated urgency flagging: Anima assigns a red urgency grading to clinically urgent requests, allowing practices to prioritise same-day action where it matters most. Across the DDICB cohort, an average of 38% of requests were flagged as urgent.

• Intelligent workforce delegation: requests are routed to the most appropriate team member—admin, nurse, pharmacist, or GP—based on clinical need rather than default escalation.

• Programme-level reporting: real-time data across all sites gives the ICB visibility over demand volumes, response times, delegation patterns, and contract readiness.

The Results: Measurable Impact at Programme Level

Between 1 January and 11 March 2026, the programme delivered consistent, measurable results: 51,058 patient requests processed, 115,770 registered patients covered, 80.4% of requests actioned same day, a 76-minute median medical close, and 72.1% of requests resolved without a GP.

Workforce Delegation

One of the programme’s most significant outcomes is the shift in how patient demand is distributed across the workforce. Non-clinical staff—receptionists, care navigators, administrators—close 64.3% of all requests. Clinical non-GP staff handle a further 7.8%. GPs resolve the remaining 27.9%.

This delegation model frees GP time for the patients who need it most, while ensuring straightforward requests are handled quickly and efficiently by the right team member.

April 2026 GP Contract Readiness

From 1 April 2026, GP practices must ensure all clinically urgent patients are seen on the same day, with no capping of online consultation requests. Anima’s structured triage automatically categorises requests by clinical urgency, making compliance a natural outcome of the existing workflow.

Across the programme, urgent requests are resolved with a median response time of 61 minutes. Eight of ten practices achieve same-day urgent resolution above 80%, with five above 90%.

Practice Performance Highlights

• Royal Primary Care operates as a centralised triage hub across four sites covering 50,000+ patients. A single triage team manages demand for all four locations, processing 577 requests per day—54% of the programme’s total volume despite representing 39% of its patient population.

• Manor House Surgery is the highest-volume single site in the programme, processing over 210 requests per day. 94% of urgent medical requests are actioned the same day, with a median close of 38 minutes.

Looking Ahead

The programme continues to grow. Three additional practices are currently onboarding. Once live, the DDICB Anima programme will cover approximately 158,000 patients across 13 practices.

With weekly volumes stabilised at approximately 5,700–6,000 requests per week and the April contract deadline approaching, the data demonstrates that AI-powered triage is not just viable at scale—it delivers consistent, measurable improvements in access, efficiency, and workforce utilisation.

Key Takeaways for ICBs and Primary Care Networks

• AI triage works at programme level: 51,058 requests processed across 9 practices with 80% actioned same day and a 76-minute median medical close.

• It frees GP capacity: 72% of requests were closed by non-GP staff, redirecting clinical time to the patients who need it most.

• It supports contract compliance: 8 of 9 practices already exceed 80% same-day urgent resolution, with automated urgency flagging built into the workflow.

• Programme-level data drives improvement: unified reporting helps ICBs identify variation, target support, and demonstrate impact to stakeholders.

About Anima Health

Anima Health builds AI-powered tools for NHS general practice, helping practices manage patient demand safely and efficiently. The Anima triage platform is used across integrated care boards and primary care networks in England, processing hundreds of thousands of patient requests each month.