States invest £1.8m. in IT infrastructure for HSC

Tuesday 05 June 2018

£1.8m. of States money is set to be invested into further upgrades of IT infrastructure within Health & Social Care.

The project is a key enabler to improve services and provide the capacity required to deliver the transformation identified in the Partnership of Purpose.

Capital expenditure has been agreed that will see the ageing Local Area Network and WiFi in all the HSC sites replaced, from the PEH to the Community Centres.

The current LAN, which supports all HSC staff and services, is no longer fit for purpose with some devices more than 12 years old.

This project is part of the wider programme of digitisation in HSC to replace old technology and ensure the infrastructure can support the latest healthcare innovations.  The HSC Technology upgrade programme has already seen the majority of old XP desktop computers replaced last year and the successful delivery of the new Laboratory Information Management system this year.

"This project was an absolute priority for the Committee and we are pleased that the Policy & Resources Committee unanimously supported the business case. HSC needs a network that can support the delivery of services across our wide-ranging workforce, which extends over 52 sites. The current LAN is no longer fit for purpose," Deputy Heidi Soulsby, President of HSC, said.

"It is old and has evolved over more than a decade without viewing all of our services and their needs holistically. 

"Crucially, the current network simply is not capable of supporting new innovative technologies such as mobility-based solutions. Investing in infrastructure is an absolute must and this capital project will deliver improvements today for our workforce, while laying the necessary foundations for the Committee to use developments in healthcare technology as we progress our Partnership of Purpose reforms."

HSC services are spread out across multiple sites, including Alderney, and a spokesperson said it was "therefore essential that a robust and high-performing LAN exists both for services today, and to provide a secure and stable platform that can support transformation over the long-term".

XMA, which has a presence in Guernsey and also supports ICT systems within island schools, will supply the new LAN following a tender process.

Colin Vaudin, States of Guernsey Chief Information Officer, said: "The LAN replacement project is an essential replacement of dated infrastructure that provides a platform for the transformation of services by the Committee for Health & Social Care.

"It is a technical 'must do' to support our front-line medical staff in ensuring they can effectively continue to deliver the services HSC provides today, but it also comes at a time of key opportunity as the Committee embarks on a period of significant change. A new LAN does not transform services itself but provides core tools on which to develop and deliver improved services."