A medical drone delivery service for Guy's and St Thomas's NHS Foundation Trust is now in action.

The electric drone service is transporting urgent blood samples for patients undergoing surgery who are at high risk of complications from bleeding disorders and aims to improve patient care, by speeding up testing turnaround times.

By road, transporting samples between Synnovis’ lab at Guy’s Hospital and the lab at St Thomas’ Hospital can take more than half an hour by road but takes less than two minutes by drone.

At the same time, lightweight commercial drones can reduce CO2e emissions by up to 99 per cent compared to non-electric cars and reduce transportation electricity needed compared to electric delivery vans.

Lightweight commercial drones can reduce CO2e emissions by up to 99% compared to non-electric cars and reduce transportation electricity needed compared to electric delivery vans.

Lawrence Tallon, deputy chief executive of Guy’s and St Thomas’, said: “This drone trial to deliver blood samples should speed up test results for some of our most vulnerable patients, ensuring they have the very best care. It combines innovations in healthcare with sustainability to give us an NHS fit for the future.”

Professor Dominic Harrington, chief scientific officer, Synnovis, said: "Tens of thousands of essential patient samples are analysed by pathology laboratories across London each week. Reducing the time it takes to transport these samples means results are available more quickly to inform best possible patient care. We’re excited to be working with Apian on this pioneering project and look forward to seeing where this can go next.”