This week NHSX and NHS England published a new section on the Health Systems Support Framework, a list of 8 accredited suppliers of electronic patient record solutions.
NHS England hopes the framework will support entities digitise more quickly and procure health tech for digital transformation and integrated services.
In a comment to HTN Richard Strong, vice president and managing director, EMEA, Allscripts, said “There are many framework contracts out there, but this one feels significant because it has been issued by NHS England and NHSX. We anticipate that as NHSX defines the technology standards that it expects NHS IT systems to meet, it will feed them back into this contract.
“The framework creates a vehicle for companies to show that they meet those standards, and for trusts to show that they are buying compliant systems, so they can secure central funding. As such, we think it represents the next step in the evolution of the NHS’ approach to going digital.
“This is an approach that Allscripts is very happy with, given our commitment to openness and to working with partners and innovators to help organisations to achieve their digital ambitions. The Health Systems Support Framework is also significant because it sets a high quality bar for suppliers.
“We were asked to provide case studies and to have some of our clients sign off on them. Our global digital exemplar, Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, outlined how it has used Sunrise, our electronic patient record, on its digital journey and the benefits it has achieved. That partnership approach is new; and means that trusts have a pre-endorsement of any solutions they are interested in.
“We were also asked to demonstrate that we could deliver what NHS England and NHSX call modular solutions. We have developed a clinical wrap approach that enables trusts to retain their patient administration and other systems and add clinical functionality at their own pace. So, we are definitely in a position to work that way, and the framework is a strong endorsement of our clinical wrap approach.
“Finally, lot one is one of ten lots on this framework, which is designed to make sure that healthcare communities can not only buy the IT systems that their providers need, but the infrastructure, shared care records, and population health management systems that they will need for transformation and integration projects.
“Allscripts is also listed on lot 2b for our dbMotion product, which is a health information exchange platform that can be used for care co-ordination, analysis and patient engagement. So, this framework will not only give trusts faster, easier access to our solutions, it will give their healthcare economies access to systems that will connect them with others in the landscape.
“The Health Systems Support Framework is a significant, national development, and we are very pleased to have been included on it.”
The framework was created to provide services that support the delivery of integrated care, with the new EPR section to provide access to supplier systems able to meet the Global Digital Exemplars (GDE) standards.
Eight suppliers were successful – Allscripts, Cerner, DXC, IMS Maxims, Nervecentre, Meditech, TPP and System C.