BridgeHead Secures Place on NHS Supply Chain Framework

BridgeHead Software Ltd
announces its inclusion on the NHS
Supply Chain Framework [1] Agreement for Lot 4 DICOM Vendor Neutral Storage
Solutions (VNA) and Lot 5 DICOM Data Migration Solutions.

The agreement provides trusts with access to a pre-qualified, pre-selected list
of approved suppliers, such as BridgeHead Software, expediting the procurement
process and potentially reducing procurement costs.

BridgeHead’s Healthcare Data Management (HDM) solution enables the storing,
protecting and sharing of both clinical data (from PACS and other ‘ologies’,
using both DICOM and non-DICOM formats) and administrative data (such as email,
documents, spreadsheets etc.). This addresses the VNA requirements as defined
within Lot 4, and additionally provides a strategic solution for hospitals’
overall data management for the future.

BridgeHead’s HDM Solution also offers a data migration service (meeting the
requirements of Lot 5 by which healthcare organisations can move their legacy
data into the archive, where it can be appropriately stored, protected and
shared.

Once in place, this working data management solution enables hospital staff to
search and access patients’ records from multiple systems and locations which,
in turn, enables the delivery of more timely and better quality care to
patients as well as improving administrative efficiencies.

By offering Lots for the various elements of the PACS ecosystem, the
NHS Supply Chain is providing Trusts with a modular approach to procurement,
where they can:

• address their short-term goals by purchasing an interim
  solution;
• take a step-by-step approach to their long-term strategic objectives;
  or
• go for an implementation.

This gives hospitals flexibility and choice as to
the approach they take to address their current challenges. Furthermore, it
means Trusts can select suppliers from the various Lots that best meet their
requirements, based on their tactical or strategic approaches.

Jim Beagle, CEO at BridgeHead Software, comments: "We’re very pleased to have been accepted as
a vendor for Lots 4 and 5 on such an important framework – both in our own
right as well as being available for procurement via some of our strategic
partners who have also secured their places. The NHS Supply Chain is offering
an alternative to the traditional OJEU procurement process. The framework
allows for a much simpler purchasing experience with the additional benefit of
advice and the option of financing from the NHS Supply Chain."

Jamie Clifton, director of Product Management at BridgeHead Software, feels
this is a perfect time for Trusts to change how they use data to the betterment
of patient care and to drive efficiencies across the organisation.

For example, Clifton comments: "The
ending of the PACS contracts should be seen as an opportunity for trusts to
review what is currently being done with diagnostic imaging in the NHS, not
just in terms of the sharing and accessing of data, but also in terms of the storage,
protection and management of that data within the broader IT infrastructure."

Clifton added: "BridgeHead
has a much broader, strategic view of healthcare data management of which a VNA
is part. We believe a true healthcare archive should take into account the
storage, management, sharing, accessing, protection and security of all data
across the entire hospital, not just radiology. In our experience, this fully
integrated approach to VNA reduces costs and increases efficiency by
facilitating sharing, compliance requests and DR using the same technology
platform. Consequently, it is really important that trusts make decisions now
that map to their long-terms strategic goals in the future."

BridgeHead expects to complete the Framework ‘on-boarding’ process
imminently.

[1]The benefits of the NHS Supply Chain Framework Agreement are
three fold: it brings a degree of expertise in helping Trusts understand what
their programme requirements might be, it can help with the procurement cycle
and it can also handle relationships post procurement with suppliers.