Launching in spring 2027, our new HSMA-λ (HSMA lambda) offering is a series of standalone workshops targeted at decision makers in the health service.
HSMA-λ will focus on supporting participants to understand the advanced techniques that are taught on HSMA so you can ask the right questions and interpret project outputs.
Register your interest
We would be delighted if you could fill in our expression of interest form for HSMA-λ. This will help us to ensure we offer enough dates for each workshop.
Register λ interestWe will then circulate the workshop dates ahead of launch and contact you with details of how to book at that time.
Please note that completing this expression of interest does not guarantee a place at the workshops.
What is lambda?
Taught by the core HSMA team – applied University of Exeter researchers who have delivered training to over 450 HSMAs and supported the development of over 100 real-world healthcare data science projects in the NHS, allied professions, healthcare charities and beyond – this new format opens up the world of HSMA to a wider range of people.
Our three workshops will focus on a different modelling or data science approach, and therefore a different set of problems that can be solved. Attend one or attend them all – it’s up to you!
At each workshop, you will
- Learn about the kinds of questions that these methods can be used to answer
- Understand how the methods work at a high level, and how you can interact with these models and interpret their outputs
- Identify problems in your own organisation that could be tackled using these methods
- Identify shared problems across organisations that could be tackled collaboratively
- Form structured questions to use as a basis for project work in HSMA, and identify individuals or teams to nominate for HSMA to work on these problems
No code, no technical jargon
Just teaching focused on real-world application, helping you understand the art of the possible in cutting-edge data science and operational research techniques, whatever your prior level of knowledge.
What workshops are offered?
for Pathway Problems
for Equity and Efficiency
for Operational Improvements
In this workshop, we explore the powerful technique of discrete event simulation (DES).
DES allows you to create computer models of pathways, helping you to answer ‘what-if’ questions about pathway resourcing and configuration in a risk-free environment.
Used extensively in manufacturing and logistics, this technique allows you to model anything from emergency departments to ambulances to elective surgery waits.
Understanding the kind of questions that are suited to DES unlocks a powerful new way to ensure pathways are right-sized, robust and ready for the future.
In this workshop, we explore how we can better understand the geographical distribution of our demand and make sure our services are in the right place to support our population.
We will explore the powerful location optimization algorithms that the HSMA course teaches analysts to use, helping you manage new sites, service closures, or locating a range of new services in a data-driven way that can account for real-world car and public transport travel times, equity, and emissions.
In this workshop, we focus on how machine learning can be used to drive operational improvements.
Helping to carefully navigate the complexity of how machine learning projects can be used for service improvement, we explore the data requirements, ethics and regulations surrounding machine learning in operational contexts.
We will explore success stories from previous HSMA cohorts, such as how machine learning helped drive significant reductions in patient non-attendance by allowing better targeting of high-risk non-attenders.
We also equip you with the knowledge you need to ask the right questions about algorithm performance, and support you to think about opportunities for how machine learning can be used safely, equitably and effectively in your organisation.
How can I sign up?
Register your interest
We would be delighted if you could fill in our expression of interest form for HSMA-λ. This will help us to ensure we offer enough dates for each workshop.
Register λ interestWe will then circulate the workshop dates ahead of launch and contact you with details of how to book at that time.
Please note that completing this expression of interest does not guarantee a place at the workshops.
If you are interested in being kept up to date with HSMA more generally, please drop us an email and we will keep you informed via our mailing list.
You can also follow us on LinkedIn.
FAQs
Who can attend?
Do I need any technical background?
No! Unlike the core HSMA programme, there are no coding or technical requirements for HSMA lambda workshops. We do not expect you to have any prior knowledge of these techniques or any background in mathematics, computer programming, data science or operational research.
I am based outside England - can I apply?
Unfortunately our live workshops are limited to participants who work for an English health service only. Your own geographical location can differ.
If you are not eligible to join, note that the slides and interactive exercises from lambda workshops will be made available freely to all.
I am based in the private sector - can I apply?
Unfortunately we are not able to support attendance from those working in profit-making/private-sector organisations at this time.
However, the slides and interactive exercises from lambda workshops will be made available freely to all.
Can several people from the same organisation attend?
Yes, absolutely. There are no limits on the number of participants from a single organisation.
I’m just curious about doing the full programme - is this a taster session?
Participants for lambda workshops are expected to be those with a direct decision-making role within the NHS and who are expecting to direct and support others to undertake the work.
These workshops will be very different to a normal HSMA session and will not teach you to undertake the projects yourself. The focus, format and exercises will be very different so will not give you a true flavour of the full HSMA course.
If you’re keen to find out whether the full HSMA course is right for you, we’d instead recommend looking at our HSMA 7 page, watching our HSMA 6 open day presentation, or taking a look at the HSMA 6 content.
Workshop format
How long are the workshops?
Each workshop will last between 3 and 4.5 hours, depending on the workshop. Exact timings will be shared when the individual workshop registration opens; in the meantime, please do register your interest.
What platform will be used for delivering lambda workshops?
All workshops will be delivered on Zoom or Teams - this is being finalised based on technical and access requirements.
You will need a working microphone at a minimum, and we would strongly recommend turning on your camera for the discussion-based exercises.
Do I need to prepare anything in advance?
No preparation is required.
Can I attend more than one workshop?
Yes, absolutely! While the first ten minutes of each workshop share some similarities while we introduce a couple of key concepts, the remainder will cover completely different techniques, so there is value in attending more than one, though there is also no obligation to do so. Take a look at the workshop descriptions to see if they might be relevant to you.
Do I have to attend the workshops in a specific order?
The three workshops can be attended in any order - no workshop relies on content from another.
Will the workshops be recorded?
To support open discussions, we will not be recording lambda workshops. However, the slides and interactive exercises will be available after the workshop, along with cheatsheets to remind you of key terminology and concepts from each workshop.
Will I learn to undertake these projects myself?
No – but you will learn enough to be able to design and support projects using the methods covered on each workshop.
You will also have the opportunity to propose project ideas to be worked on in HSMA 7 as HSMA projects, as well as nominating candidates from your organisation for the HSMA programme.
If you want to learn how to write the code required to create these models yourself, keep an eye out for registration opening up for HSMA 7 (hopefully launching in spring/summer 2027) or access our HSMA 6 recordings or teach-yourself ebooks.
After the workshop
Does attending a lambda workshop guarantee that my project idea will be taken forward?
Unfortunately we cannot guarantee that every proposed project will be possible to take forward into a full HSMA project. However, where similar projects are proposed by multiple organisations, we hope to facilitate collaboration so that bigger and better solutions can be created.
Does nominating someone for the HSMA programme via lambda guarantee them a place on the HSMA programme?
We aim to support as many people as possible to learn via the full HSMA programme, and we would expect the vast majority of people nominated to be accepted onto the programme. However, while we do not require any particular prior qualifications and no previous coding experience is required for the full HSMA course, we do require nominated participants to meet a minimum level of computer literacy and confidence, which we have found is necessary to be able to manage the level of content they are learning on the course. Therefore, we may occasionally have to reject applications on these grounds.
Will I receive a certificate of attendance?
Certificates of attendance are available on request by emailing penchord@exeter.ac.uk.
Are there CPD points associated with this training?
There are no CPD points associated with lambda workshops.
Other
My question is not answered here
Please send us an email at penchord@exeter.ac.uk and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.