Simon's Story: Eight Years Later and Still Looking Forward

Every now and then you stumble across something from your past that makes you stop and think.

Recently, while looking into supportive information for something that I'll write about in the very future, I found myself revisiting a short video I created around eight years ago.

I hadn't watched it for years.

What I expected was a trip down memory lane.

What I found instead was a reminder of how many of the ambitions we are still pursuing today were already visible through the experiences of one remarkable individual called Simon.

His story helped us explain why digital transformation mattered then.

And perhaps more surprisingly, it helps explain why it still matters now.

The Video is shared at the end of this post.

As you watch it, remember that this was recorded around eight years ago—long before many of today's conversations about neighbourhood health, the NHS App, and the Single Patient Record had become national priorities.

Meeting Simon

Before a life-changing accident, Simon's life looked much like many of ours.

• Work.
• Family.
• Leisure.
• Independence.
• Future plans.

Then, following a serious accident, everything changed.

Simon became a tetraplegic.

What struck me most was never what Simon had lost, but how determined he was to focus on supporting change for the benefit of others

After his accident his interactions with health and care services had become significantly more complicated.

Not because people didn't care.

Not because professionals weren't trying their best.

But because the system wasn't always connected.

Simon and his family often found themselves explaining the same information repeatedly.

Different organisations frequently held different pieces of the picture.

Important context wasn't always available when it was needed.

The responsibility for joining everything together often fell back onto Simon and those closest to him.

Anyone who has worked in health and care for long enough will recognise this challenge.

The issue was never individual commitment.

The issue was fragmentation.

Helping People Understand the "Why"

When we created the video, our objective wasn't simply to tell Simon's story.

We were trying to help current and future stakeholders understand why digital transformation mattered.

Like many digital programmes, we were discussing concepts that could easily become technical and abstract.

• Shared records.
• Information sharing.
• Interoperability.
• Integrated care.
• Digital transformation.

These are all important concepts, but they can sometimes feel distant from everyday experience.

Simon helped us bridge that gap - his story provided a way to explain the purpose behind the work.

Instead of talking about systems, we could talk about outcomes.

Instead of talking about technology, we could talk about people.

Instead of discussing organisational challenges, we could discuss the experience of someone navigating care every day.

When people heard about information sharing, they could understand why it mattered.

When we talked about connected records, they could see the impact on a real person.

When we discussed patient empowerment, they could appreciate why control over information was important.

Simon helped make the ambition tangible.

In many ways, he became one of the most effective advocates for connected care that we could have hoped for.

What Simon Wanted

The interesting thing is that Simon wasn't asking for anything particularly revolutionary.

He wasn't talking about artificial intelligence.

He wasn't talking about advanced analytics.

He wasn't talking about future technology.

He simply wanted care to feel joined up.

He wanted professionals to have access to the information they needed.

He wanted people to understand his circumstances without him having to repeat his story every time.

He wanted communication to be easier.

He wanted patients to have more control over their information.

Most importantly, he wanted the system to work together around the individual.

Looking back, those ambitions feel remarkably familiar.

From Patient Story to Patient Leader

What happened next was perhaps even more important.

Simon didn't just share his story.

He wanted to help improve the system.

Later, he joined our STP Digital Board, bringing lived experience directly into discussions about digital transformation.

For those of us working in digital health, his contribution was invaluable.

There is something incredibly powerful about having somebody in the room who can move a conversation from theory to reality in a matter of seconds.

When discussions became technical, Simon would bring us back to outcomes.

When conversations became organisational, Simon would bring us back to people.

He wasn't there as a token patient representative.

He was there because his perspective improved the conversation.

He helped us make better decisions.

Reading the NHS 10 Year Plan Through Simon's Eyes

Watching the video again in 2026, I found myself comparing Simon's ambitions with those described in the NHS 10 Year Plan.

The similarities are striking.

Today we talk about:

• Shared Care Records
• The Single Patient Record
• The NHS App
• Neighbourhood Health Services
• Patient empowerment
• Personalised care
• Digital-first interactions
• Better use of information across organisational boundaries
• AI supporting patients and professionals

The technology has evolved dramatically.

But the outcomes we are trying to achieve remain remarkably similar.

At its heart, the ambition is still the same:

Can we make care feel connected from the patient's perspective?

Patients do not experience organisations.

They experience journeys.

Appointments.

Assessments.

Referrals.

Conversations.

Transitions between services.

And every time information fails to follow them, every time they have to repeat their story, every time they become the integration point between different organisations, we are reminded that there is still more work to do.

The Question That Still Matters

The video is now eight years old.

Some of the technology discussed has become reality.

Some of it is still evolving.

Some ambitions have grown beyond what we imagined at the time.

But the fundamental question remains unchanged.

Simon wasn't asking for systems.

He was asking for a system that worked.

As digital leaders, it is easy to become absorbed by programmes, platforms, architectures, strategies, and delivery plans.

Those things matter.

But they are not the destination.

The destination is a health and care system that feels simpler, more connected, and more human for the people who rely upon it.

Eight years later, Simon's story still feels relevant.

Perhaps that's because the technology was never the point.

The point was always the person.

And if Simon were sitting around a board table with us today, I suspect he would ask a very simple question:

"Has all of this made life easier for patients and families?"

That's still a question worth asking.

And for me, Simon's story remains one of the clearest explanations of why digital transformation matters.