NHS England awards £480m Federated Information Platform contract to Palantir

NHS England has awarded a contract to function its future federated information platform undertaking (FDP), price £330 million, to US information analytics big Palantir, with assist from Accenture, PwC, NECS and Carnall Farrar, NHSE formally introduced. 

Palantir was extensively seen because the favorite to win all through the procurement in partnership with Accenture, and has now been chosen forward of rival bidders together with Oracle and IBM. 

The contract award will see funding over the course of seven years as extra trusts be a part of the platform, the NHS confirmed. Within the first contract yr, funding is anticipated to be at the very least £25.6m. Over the contractual interval of seven years, there might be as much as £330m funding within the Federated Information Platform and related companies.

NHSE states that no firm concerned within the FDP can entry well being and care information with out the express permission of the NHS. All information throughout the platform is below the management of the NHS and can solely be used for direct care and planning. It is not going to be used to entry information for analysis functions and GP information is not going to feed into the nationwide model of the software program platform, it provides.

FDP will assist 5 use instances: inhabitants well being and particular person perception, care coordination, provide chain, vaccination and immunisation, and elective restoration.

NHSE categorises the FDP as software program designed to sit down throughout NHS trusts and ICSs, permitting them to attach information they already maintain in a “safe and secure surroundings.” GP information is not going to be included within the undertaking. 

The software program might be “federated” throughout the well being service, that means that every particular person organisation could have its personal model of the platform that may join and collaborate with different information platforms as a federation. 

NHSE says the FDP is necessary because it allows different systems to “speak to each other” and work at scale, benefitting sufferers by making certain extra joined up care, contributing to improved well being outcomes. Making it simpler for healthcare employees to entry info in a single location may also help unlock time spent on administration, it provides. 

NHS nationwide director for transformation Dr Vin Diwakar stated: “Higher use of information is crucial for the NHS to sort out ready instances, be a part of up affected person care and make the well being service sustainable for the long run.

“Sufferers come to the NHS at among the most weak factors of their lives, they usually need to know that our healthcare groups have entry to the absolute best info with regards to their therapy and care.

“This new instrument gives a secure and safe surroundings to carry collectively information, which allows us to develop and ship extra responsive companies for sufferers and can assist the well being service drive the restoration in elective care.” 

Palantir CEO Alex Karp stated: “There isn’t a extra necessary establishment within the UK than the NHS and we’re humbled to have now been chosen to supply that software program throughout England to assist carry down ready lists, enhance affected person care and scale back well being inequalities.

“It builds on our function supporting the supply of the Covid-19 vaccine and, extra just lately, serving to particular person NHS Trusts to schedule extra operations.”

Following the award of the contract for the FDP this week, there might be a six-month implementation interval the place merchandise supported by the present information platform might be transitioned throughout.

Digital Well being Information reported on 9 November that Palantir had been named the winner of the FDP contract following log out by ministers, however NHS England insisted that the provider course of had not but been accomplished at that time.