Government to scrap the £12billion National Programme for IT
Government has finally admitted the scheme has failed and trusts will now be able to procure solutions locally
NEARLY 18 months after HES exclusively revealed secret plans to scrap the much criticised NHS National Programme for IT, the Government has finally admitted the £12billion scheme has failed and trusts will now be able to procure solutions locally.
The news comes after a review by the Cabinet Office’s Major Projects Authority (MPA), which concluded the central programme was not fit to provide the modern IT services the NHS so desperately needs. The move will mean the initiative, first launched under the Labour government in 2002, will now be dismantled and NHS trusts will be free to purchase their own solutions.
The National Progamme for IT achieved much in terms of infrastructure and this will be maintained, but we need to move on from a top-down approach and instead provide information systems driven by local decision-making. This is the only way to make sure we get value for money and that the modern NHS meets the needs of patients
However, the MPA did highlight some successes achieved through the programme, including the NHS spine, N3 Network, NHSmail, Choose and Book, Secondary Users Service and the Picture Archiving and Communications Service, which will all be retained. Their delivery accounts for around two thirds of the £6.4billion spent so far on the scheme.
In a statement, a spokesman for the Department of Health, said: “In a modernised NHS, which puts patients and clinicians in the driving seat for achieving health outcomes among the best in the world, it is no longer appropriate for a centralised authority to make decisions on behalf of local organisations. We will continue to work with our existing suppliers to determine the best way to deliver the services upon which the NHS depends in a way which allows the local NHS to exercise choice while delivering best value for money.
In a modernised NHS, which puts patients and clinicians in the driving seat for achieving health outcomes among the best in the world, it is no longer appropriate for a centralised authority to make decisions on behalf of local organisations
“The exchange of information between patients and clinicians and across the NHS is a fundamental part of how we are centring care on patients and making sure innovation and choice are fully supported. The National Progamme for IT achieved much in terms of infrastructure and this will be maintained, along with national applications, such as the Summary Care Record and Electronic Prescriptions Service, which are crucial to improving patient safety and efficiency. But we need to move on from a top-down approach and instead provide information systems driven by local decision-making. This is the only way to make sure we get value for money and that the modern NHS meets the needs of patients.”
Francis Maude, minister for the Cabinet Office, added: “This Government will not allow costly failure of major projects to continue. The National Programme for IT embodies the type of unpopular top-down programme that has been imposed on frontline NHS staff in the past. Following the Major Projects Authority review, we now need to move faster to push power to the NHS frontline and get the best value for taxpayers’ money.”
The decision has been widely welcomed, both by NHS trusts struggling to work with the chosen contractors, and suppliers who have had problems getting their solutions into the health service supply chain.
The National Programme for IT embodies the type of unpopular top-down programme that has been imposed on frontline NHS staff in the past. We now need to move faster to push power to the NHS frontline and get the best value for taxpayers’ money
Sir David Nicholson, chief executive of the NHS, said: “A modernised NHS needs information systems that are driven by what patients and clinicians want. The National Programme for IT has provided us with a foundation, but we now need to move on if we are going to achieve the efficiency and effectiveness required in today’s health service. Restoring local control over decision-making and enabling greater choice for NHS organisations is key as we continue to use the secure exchange of information to drive up quality and safety.”
Restoring local control over decision-making and enabling greater choice for NHS organisations is key as we continue to use the secure exchange of information to drive up quality and safety
And Katie Davis, managing director for informatics at the Department of Health, added: “There are two important things we must achieve – the development of a vibrant marketplace for healthcare IT and clarity that we no longer manage delivery centrally unless there is a single, clear requirement across the NHS.
“We have a great opportunity to build a new way of working which helps patients and clinicians gain the best value for public money.”
She has now announced a full review of all informatics applications and services and will reveal later in the autumn exactly what work will continue and how the Government will support trusts moving forward. A new partnership with Intellect, the technology trade association, will also explore ways to stimulate a marketplace that will no longer exclude small and medium-sized companies from participating in significant government healthcare projects.
We have a great opportunity to build a new way of working which helps patients and clinicians gain the best value for public money
Commenting on the impact the decision will have on the healthcare IT marketplace, Jon Lindberg, head of Intellect’s healthcare programme, said: “This is about opening up and giving opportunities for suppliers to deliver solutions for the NHS and for the NHS to have a better understanding of what industry can offer, rather than going to frameworks and other procurement routes.”
But other experts predict a period of uncertainty as trusts, which are already going through a period of reform, decide what direction to move in and identify the necessary funds. A spokesman for analysts, Techmarketview, said: “Inevitably there will be a hiatus in the delivery of electronic records while trusts look at how they can link up what they already have, rather than ripping out and replacing. This will mean more opportunities for those not part of the programme, but also a period of uncertainty and delay.”