£2m NHS computer system in Sussex scrapped (From The Argus)
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£2m NHS computer system in Sussex scrapped
12:00pm Tuesday 17th February 2009 in News By Siobhan Ryan, Health Reporter
A hospital computer system for patient records which cost more than £2 million to set up is being scrapped.
Worthing and Southlands Hospitals NHS Trust is abandoning the Cerner Millennium programme because of its planned merger with the Royal West Sussex NHS Trust.
The new trust, which is expected to begin on April 1, will use a system called Helix currently being used by the Royal West Sussex and previously used by Worthing.
Worthing has had numerous problems with Cerner since it was installed in September 2007.
Staff complained it was difficult to manage and wasn't properly recording all the work being done.
Other problems with Cerner include staff being unable to locate or track patients or case notes, its inability to record A&E procedures and its inability to print and annotate patient lists or labels for specimens being sent for tests.
Tad Matus, from the South East Coast Strategic Health Authority, which has been overseeing the switch to the new system, said: "We can't have a merged organisation working with two different systems so either Worthing or the Royal West Sussex had to adapt.
"With hindsight, if we had known of the merger then we probably would not have gone ahead with the installation at Worthing.
"However, there had not been any indication of that when we made the original decision."
Nationally there are now plans for a major new IT programme for trusts in London and the South East but that is still being developed.
A spokeswoman for Worthing and Southlands trust said: "It is more sensible to transfer Worthing and Southlands to a familiar system still being used at the Royal West Sussex than to move them to an entirely new platform on a temporary basis."
The Cerner programme was provided as part of the Government's £12.7 billion scheme to update NHS IT systems across Britain.
Several trusts across the country have experienced similar technical problems with Cerner.
Is the decision the right one? Tell us what you think below.
Comments(14)
BBBrighton
says...
12:08pm Tue 17 Feb 09
stickman
says...
12:29pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Lil
says...
12:39pm Tue 17 Feb 09
But seriously, if the software doesn't do what it was meant to do, could there not be a breach of contract and a reason to claim?
And maybe also -- do your research properly when the tenders come in? Or is it a case of managers being blinded by buzz words and bright lights? Something tells me it is.
NoWaySeriously
says...
12:42pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Ming
says...
12:54pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Andy R
says...
1:18pm Tue 17 Feb 09
davyboy
says...
2:18pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Lil wrote:i don't know about buzz words and lights, how about the cheapest price for the shoddiest system. i agree that, if the programmers were given a brief of what was required and then not come up with the goods, a possible breach of contract has occured, and compensation is justified.
I have no idea as I don't know anything about the software in question.
But seriously, if the software doesn't do what it was meant to do, could there not be a breach of contract and a reason to claim?
And maybe also -- do your research properly when the tenders come in? Or is it a case of managers being blinded by buzz words and bright lights? Something tells me it is.
rs
says...
2:26pm Tue 17 Feb 09
stickman wrote:well maybe it might have been a good idea for all hospitals to use the same system in the first place, for financial and practical reasons.
Quite right to bring this up Argus - they should of course maintain two completely separate and incompatible systems and keep throwing money away making them work. Next time lets hope they look into the future and predict all possible situations than we wouldn't be in this mess!!
King from Hove
says...
2:42pm Tue 17 Feb 09
ryalto
says...
2:48pm Tue 17 Feb 09
quedula
says...
4:28pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Dickens Cider
says...
4:44pm Tue 17 Feb 09
Did they not consult with the workforce before making a decision and give it thourough testing to make sure it did everything they want?
If it's bespoke software not living up to expectations they would probably be due a refund. Although, they probably just said "yes" without thinking it through.
This sort of thing really nobbles my nuts!!
cheezburger
says...
7:02pm Tue 17 Feb 09
GreenGrocer
says...
10:54pm Tue 17 Feb 09
davyboy wrote:hey don't blame the programmers, blame the ars*h*le managers on both client and supplier side and dumb analysts that captured the requirements, programmers write EXACTLY what is specified!
Lil wrote: I have no idea as I don't know anything about the software in question. But seriously, if the software doesn't do what it was meant to do, could there not be a breach of contract and a reason to claim? And maybe also -- do your research properly when the tenders come in? Or is it a case of managers being blinded by buzz words and bright lights? Something tells me it is.i don't know about buzz words and lights, how about the cheapest price for the shoddiest system. i agree that, if the programmers were given a brief of what was required and then not come up with the goods, a possible breach of contract has occured, and compensation is justified.
It doesn't get past unit or acceptance test otherwise, I know, I did it professionally for 15 yrs, and I can tell ya first hand, most managers couldn't find a certain part of their body with both hands!
Unfortunately customers in a lot of cases don't understand what they have signed up to be implemented due to a lack of technical knowledge and poor explanation to them, and software houses sometimes misunderstand what the customers want in the first place!
Good gravy train tho!
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