Start here · 3:15
One connected view of the work
Public healthcare · AI-enabled clinical coding
Project AURA
Turning clinical activity into strategic insight.
A research project examining how clinical coding connects the care people deliver with the decisions health-system leaders make.
Research led by Demogene Smith · 2023–2027
From the ward to the boardTechnology-enabled transformation in public healthcare
01 / The research
A closer connection between
care and strategy.
Primary research question
To what extent can technology-enabled transformation reduce the disconnect between strategic planning and operational delivery in public healthcare by improving the translation of operational activity into actionable strategic insight?
Research aim
To determine the extent and conditions under which technology-enabled transformation can strengthen the translation of operational activity into actionable strategic insight in public healthcare, using AI-enabled clinical coding as the bounded case.
AI-enabled clinical coding is the bounded case through which the study examines this wider organisational question.
Six questions guide the study
Understanding the gap.
Examining the conditions.
- How does the disconnect between strategic planning and operational delivery manifest in public healthcare?
- What organisational, operational, data and governance factors contribute to this disconnect?
- How does clinical coding function as a translation point between clinical activity, operational performance, funding, reporting and strategic decision-making?
- What limitations exist in manual clinical coding that may weaken the connection between operational activity and strategic health-system intelligence?
- To what extent can AI-enabled clinical coding improve the timeliness, accuracy, completeness and decision usefulness of clinical coding information?
- Under what organisational, governance and socio-technical conditions can any observed improvements be translated into actionable strategic insight?
02 / The connection
Following the information
from ward to board.
The study examines how clinical activity becomes information that leaders can use, and when each step supports better decisions.
- 01
Clinical
documentationWhat happened in the care of a patient.
- 02
Clinical
codingTranslating documented care into codes.
- 03
Qualified
coded dataReviewing the accuracy and completeness of the record.
- 04
Reporting and
fundingUnderstanding activity, quality and financial performance.
- 05
Strategic
decisionsUsing information to guide planning and action.
A research framework for examination. The study asks when, how and under which conditions these connections improve.
03 / Study focus
Better information.
Useful decisions.
The research examines coding information quality alongside the conditions people need to use it.
Information quality
- Timeliness
- How soon can people use coding information?
- Accuracy
- How faithfully does it represent documented care?
- Completeness
- How much relevant clinical activity does it capture?
- Decision usefulness
- How well does it support operational and strategic decisions?
Conditions for change
Technology sits within
a human system.
The study considers organisational structures, operational processes, data and governance, together with the socio-technical conditions that shape how people work with AI.
See the workflows
The research, in context.
Watch the overview, then explore seven focused films. Every patient record and activity shown uses synthetic demonstration data.
Watch the overview, then explore seven focused films. Every patient record and activity shown uses synthetic demonstration data.
Explore by perspective
Leadership & strategy · 1:06
The Director General view
See how leaders can follow coding health, activity and sentinel events, then examine reports informed by reviewed coded data.
Activity & funding · 1:12
Financial and activity reporting
Connect coded clinical activity with funding information, audit adjustments and the records behind the reported numbers.
Nursing & care coordination · 1:00
Referrals that reach the right team
Explore forms and routing workflows that help nursing teams collect the information a referral needs and direct it to the next team.
Coding & clinical review · 1:22
The coding lifecycle
Follow allocation, suggested codes, clinician queries and signed amendments through to audits and discharge notifications.
Documentation & evidence · 1:07
Clinical data quality
See how clinicians review documentation queries and add signed clarification to support a more complete clinical record.
Safety & quality · 1:02
From a safety signal to review
Examine flagged hospital-acquired complications, their supporting evidence and the review process alongside live surveillance.
People & capability · 1:00
Workforce enablement
Explore agent monitoring, supervised interns, targeted upskilling and coding practice that keep people involved in the work.