News, NHS trust

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust awards 10-year EPR contract

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust has awarded a 10-year contract for a community electronic patient record system with an estimated value of £3,060,870 to The Phoenix Partnership (TPP).

The contract was reportedly awarded on 6 August 2024 following a call-off from a framework agreement and will run until 22 July 2034.

In November 2023 the trust reported that it did not have a full EPR in place and confirmed that it was looking to purchase a third-party system.

In related news HTN reported on the EPR “collaboration” between Sussex Community alongside East Sussex Healthcare, Surrey and Borders Partnership and Sussex Partnership, which saw Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust award a 10-year EPR contract extension to TPP, worth an estimated £6,294,780.

Both awards follow controversy around comments reportedly made by TPP founder and CEO Frank Hester in March this year.

Electronic patient records in the spotlight

Last month we highlighted how York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust and Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust have announced their preferred supplier for their integrated EPR systems, with Nervecentre to deploy its cloud-native platform for both trusts.

Also in August, we reported on the launch of the maternity EPR at East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust; and we shared news of a prior information notice from NHS England signalling the beginning of market engagement on an EPR system to capture health data and records across the health and justice area.

Also from Sussex

We reported how Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust announced the appointment of its new chief digital and data officer, with Jake Barlow to join the trust in November following his role as digital director in health and disability from the Department of Work and Pensions.

News from earlier in the year includes an update from Sussex Health and Care on the integrated care system’s work with digital technology; Sussex Community awarding a contract for a dental patient management software service;  and the trust opening engagement for the procurement of digital tech for the clinical management of lower back pain.