Sheffield Children’s joins international collaboration to advance innovation and AI in children’s healthcare

Sheffield Children’s is proud to be part of a new international collaboration linking leading children’s hospitals across the UK and Canada to help create a healthier future for children everywhere. 

The partnership launched with a visit to The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, where NHS leaders and health professionals came together to share innovation, learn from each other’s experience, and strengthen relationships to advance the safe, effective use of artificial intelligence in children’s healthcare.

During the visit, representatives from Sheffield Children’s, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Alder Hey, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust explored the SickKids AI programme, SickKids AI (SKAI).  

They saw first-hand how AI is helping transform care in the SickKids Emergency Department, reducing waiting times and improving the experience for clinicians, children and families. 

Across the world hospitals are facing similar pressures, including rising demand, increasing complexity and growing pressure on urgent and emergency care. The AI developments at SickKids show how clinically led innovation can have a real and positive impact, helping teams focus on what matters most. 

Dr. Devin Singh, Emergency Medicine Physician and Co-Lead of SKAI Service said: “By working together on common challenges, like wait times in paediatric emergency medicine, we can accelerate progress, share what works, and ultimately have a greater impact – not just in our respective countries but beyond our respective borders.” 

This new partnership provides an opportunity to expand impact internationally and a long-term commitment to collaboration was formalised during the visit through a signed Memorandum of Understanding.  

Increasing the availability and responsible use of digital solutions across healthcare organisations worldwide has huge potential to support clinical teams to improve patient flow, ease system pressures and enhance children’s care experience. 

Dr Nicole Samuel, Commercial Director at Sheffield Children’s, said: “Collaboration in healthcare is vital to progress important ideas, spread effective innovations across the world, and inspire us all to keep pioneering to improve children’s healthcare. 

“Embracing innovation has been at the heart of Sheffield Children’s for 150 years. Joining this partnership is the latest powerful opportunity to ensure clinicians and children benefit from international expertise, proven AI solutions and the latest cutting-edge technologies.” 

Sheffield Children’s will soon open the world-class National Centre for Child Health Technology at The Spark on the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, which will help revolutionise care for children and young people.  

We are already seeing the impact of this work through collaborations with SickKids and other leading innovators nationally and internationally and look forward to building on it for the future.  

Thank you to the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDC) for supporting the partnership and funding the visit.