Following the recent successful pilots in Northumbria, the UK’s NHS Foundation Trust is now taking medical drone delivery trials to London.

Reports from the UK say that the latest trial will see urgent blood samples being taken from patients at a major London hospital and sent for analysis by drone to avoid traffic across the capital.

“We will be transporting urgent blood samples, supporting tests for patients with conditions like bleeding control disorders or transplant patients, among others. As the trial develops, we will explore flying a broader range of pathology items, medicines and supplies,” a statement from drone logistics company Apian, which is part of the partnership, said.

The other parties comprise drone company Wing, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust.

“Medical drone deliveries have the potential to make faster, more reliable and more sustainable deliveries than traditional land-based modes of transport,” Apian added.

“Quicker analysis of samples helps clinicians to efficiently determine whether patients are safe to receive treatment or be discharged. This allows the staff to be more productive, hospitals to be more resilient and patients to receive the care they need sooner.”

The trial is expected to start in autumn of 2024 and run for approximately six months.

At the moment, transferring samples between Guy’s Hospital and the lab at St Thomas’ Hospital – a journey by road of nearly two miles – can take more than half an hour using van or motorbike couriers, but the samples can be transported in less than two minutes by drone.

Experts who spoke to the BBC said the latest pilot could pave the way for other types of drone deliveries between the hospitals run by the trust, and other London hospitals.

“The drone pilot combines two of our key priorities – providing the best possible patient care and improving sustainability,” said Prof Ian Abbs, chief executive at Guy’s and St Thomas’.

“We are proud to be the first trust in London to trial this innovative approach to help speed up blood sample analysis for our most urgent cases.”

In August this year, Apian contacted trials to test the feasibility of deploying drone technology for the delivery of blood samples between Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust’s Wansbeck Hospital and Alnwick Infirmary.

The start-up and its partners – who include drone partners and researchers from NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) – set the drones against conventional road transport; in a bid to find out whether using drones to deliver components of blood delivered can compromise the product’s quality.

The tests proved not only proved that drones could deliver the samples faster that the cars can do; but also showed that there would be no loss in the quality of the blood samples transported.

A similar trial for blood platelets is also being planned.