Dr Amy Davis and Dr Farzana Rahman
Every diagnosis is a turning point - the moment uncertainty becomes clarity, the moment healthcare begins to move. But across the NHS, diagnosis is still where patients wait.
And that delay isn't caused by a lack of expertise, effort, or commitment from the people delivering care. It exists because the systems we rely on for diagnosis were designed for a different era when there was less demand, less complexity and fewer expectations.
The conversation in NHS leadership circles often frames this as a workforce problem. We don't have enough radiologists - and that's true. The UK faces a 31% shortfall in consultant radiologists, projected to reach 40% by 2028.
But focusing on headcount alone misses the deeper issue. The ecosystem in which we work needs to be redesigned. There has been tremendous technological progress in radiology, from AI tools to increasingly complex scanners, but the systems in which we use these technologies have not evolved at the same pace. Even where capacity exists, complex workflows, legacy technology and fragmented departmental processes mean we are not enabling our workforce to thrive.We’re not just short of people: we’re wasting the people we have.
Where the previous decade was dominated by digitization in healthcare, the next decade will be defined by system design. Building diagnostic infrastructure that moves at the speed patients need, at the scale services demand, and with the clinical confidence that both radiologists and patients deserve.
At Hexarad, we've built exactly that kind of system, one where radiology becomes the function that unlocks faster, more informed diagnosis. Our tech-enabled teleradiology service, ReportRad, plugs directly into hospital systems, giving clinicians access to subspecialist expertise around the clock through a network of over 350 NHS radiologists. High-quality reports can be turned around in as little as 15 minutes. Our workflow optimisation tool, OptiRad, provides radiology departments with real-time intelligence to address the inefficiencies that quietly drain capacity every day. Together, they form what we call a "radiology grid," a model designed to help hospitals optimise their own radiology resource first, then draw on our network during surges. It means clinicians are no longer waiting weeks for a report while clinical decisions are put on hold.
At one major NHS Foundation Trust, that combination increased reporting output by 12%, reduced turnaround times by 18%, and delivered £150,000 in annual savings - without adding a single headcount.
CT trauma transfers that once took 30 to 40 minutes now take as little as five because of the technology we have built. Hospitals can forecast their own demand surges, enabling the system to be better prepared for periods of pressure. To date, we have supported the diagnosis of over two million patients across NHS trusts and hospitals throughout the UK.
When diagnosis is unlocked, the downstream impact is immediate. Treatment begins sooner, pathways become more fluid, and systems regain momentum. The organisations that lead this shift won't just improve diagnostics. They will help redefine how healthcare moves.
Dr Amy Davis and Dr Farzana Rahman are consultant radiologists and co-founders of Hexarad
An article written by Hexarad on the real reasons for Radiology backlogs