IMS MAXIMS has secured a place on a framework contract established by NHS England to make it easier for healthcare economies to buy the IT they need for transformation and integration projects.
The company has secured a place on lot one of the Health Systems Support Framework, which covers electronic patient records for acute and mental health trusts. This makes IMS MAXIMS one of just eight vendors to be chosen for lot one, which is the last of ten lots to be announced.
Shane Tickell, CEO, IMS MAXIMS, explained that it had been required to video every piece of functionality included in its listing live and in-use at an NHS trust, and to have the videos endorsed by a customer at director level. NHS England then checked the endorsements.
"We were really pleased to be included on the framework, especially because the process had considerable validity behind it," he said. "Organisations looking to use this framework can be confident that everything on it has been validated by our customers; including a global digital exemplar and a fast follower."
Framework contracts should make it easier, quicker and cheaper for organisations to procure IT and other services, by pre-qualifying the companies on them. However, there are many framework contracts available to the NHS, and they tend to focus on specific systems.
The Health Systems Support Framework is meant to address both issues, by creating a consolidated framework that covers all the infrastructure, systems and data services that health and care systems need to move towardsproactive, joined-up care, wrapped around the patient.
"This is a key framework," Tickell said. "It has been run by NHS England and we hope that it will be adopted by NHSX. Being on the framework indicates that a company has solutions that meet their requirements."
Tickell added that he thought the framework would be particularly useful for sustainability and transformation partnerships and integrated care services looking to consolidate IT systems to support information sharing.
He also expects it to be used by hospital groups and consortia looking to unify their approach to technology and by smaller trusts looking to progress their digital ambitions, either through a big bang approach or an incremental approach, without incurring the disruption and expense of a 'rip and replace'.
"We are expecting STPs and ICSs to start to centralise across the piece, and for trusts to form consortia where it makes sense for a number of organisations to use the same system," he said. "The framework will give them a route to do that.
"We are also seeing an emerging market for smaller trusts that want to progress their IT at their own pace. Our inclusion on lot one will give them another way to procure our system, which is ideal for trusts looking to do that."
IMS MAXIMS’ listing on lot one of the HSS framework will give trusts access to its modern, open and integrated electronic patient record. This includes e-prescribing functionality and pharmacy stock control.
The IMS MAXIMS EPR is in use at Taunton and Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, a global digital exemplar, and also in use at Wye Valley NHS Trust, Taunton and Somerset’s fast follower on the GDE programme.
About Health Systems Support Framework
NHSX and NHS England have published a list of accredited suppliers of electronic patient record solutions, to give purchasers in the NHS more confidence in their route to digitisation.NHS England and NHSX have developed a new section on the Health Systems Support Framework to help organisations and integrated care systems get best value for money when buying new digital services, software and infrastructure.
About IMS MAXIMS
IMS MAXIMS is an award-winning clinical technology specialist, committed to improving the coordination of patient care in healthcare environments. Its expert team works in partnership with healthcare organisations to identify and deliver tailored, sustainable information sharing technology solutions supporting the provision of safer and more efficient care for current and future generations.The organisation's 33-year history of collaborating with healthcare professionals has resulted in the development of proven, flexible, user-friendly, safe and interoperable electronic patient record software. The company’s approach to digital transformation also delivers better clinical engagement and empowerment across hospital wards and departments. Deployment times are fast, meaning clinicians and patients can benefit from efficiency and safety improvements in rapid time. And with an ambition to meet today’s healthcare challenges, IMS MAXIMS offers flexible options to support healthcare providers with on-going implementation and maintenance.