Section one: Contracting authority
one.1) Name and addresses
The Department of Health and Social Care
39 Victoria Street
London
SW1 0EU
Country
United Kingdom
NUTS code
UKI - London
Justification for not providing organisation identifier
Not on any register
Internet address(es)
Main address
https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-health-and-social-care
one.3) Communication
The procurement documents are available for unrestricted and full direct access, free of charge, at
https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome.
Additional information can be obtained from the above-mentioned address
one.4) Type of the contracting authority
Body governed by public law
one.5) Main activity
Health
Section two: Object
two.1) Scope of the procurement
two.1.1) Title
The Department of Health and Social Care: ASC: Interoperability Architecture
Reference number
C254343
two.1.2) Main CPV code
- 85100000 - Health services
two.1.3) Type of contract
Services
two.1.4) Short description
This Notice does not represent an opportunity to provide services to the Authority. It represents an opportunity to engage with the Authority in its market engagement activities related to a procurement planned to commence formally in April 2025.
The interoperability platform / services will support the care and treatment of patients and users of health and Adult Social Care services and support extraction of data to identified IT systems including shared care records.
The platform / service will support:
• The sharing of agreed data and documents for care and treatment (direct care) using information standards
• The sharing of agreed real time / near real time sharing of data and documents for secondary use (including commissioner and CQC reporting) to other IT systems
• Authentication and authorisation to access the data and documents
• Security of the solution including cyber and information governance technical controls
• Supporting services including service desk / support desk
This procurement is on a published roadmap for the Digitalisation of Social Care, and The Department of Health and Social Care has requested the Digitalisation of Social Care programme managed by NHS England to undertake market engagement activities.
The Department of Health and Social Care would like to engage with suppliers to understand the supplier market view of what will be required in any new contract including interoperability standards to enable information to be shared. This will include the emerging standards from NHS England Chief Technology Officer to enable information to be shared between Electronic Patient Records (EPRs), Digital Social Care Records and Shared Care Records in England, (and where necessary using national NHS England interoperability services).
The Department of Health and Social Care is also interested in understanding different options and costs to meet the requirement.
The Department of Health and Social Care does not yet have an agreed date to go out to procurement, as this work is subject to funding approval from HM Treasury. However, it is anticipated that the contract will be formally advertised in or around April 2025.
Anticipated contract term will be subject to funding - but is not expected to be less than 5+2+2 years.
two.1.5) Estimated total value
Value excluding VAT: £0.01
two.1.6) Information about lots
This contract is divided into lots: No
two.2) Description
two.2.3) Place of performance
NUTS codes
- UKC - North East (England)
- UKD - North West (England)
- UKE - Yorkshire and the Humber
- UKF - East Midlands (England)
- UKG - West Midlands (England)
- UKH - East of England
- UKI - London
- UKJ - South East (England)
- UKK - South West (England)
two.2.4) Description of the procurement
The Department of Health and Social Care is planning to go out to formal procurement in or around April 2025. (This is subject to approved funding from HM Treasury.) In support of this, NHS England is planning to undertake market engagement activities.
A social care information sharing solution is required - a interoperability platform / services to support the sharing of data between Digital Social Care Record Systems (DSCRs) used by regulated Quality Care Commission (CQC) services in Care Homes, Nursing Homes and Domiciliary Care / Home Care and NHS systems used by NHS service providers including GPs, Hospitals, Community Services and Social Care.
The Department of Health and Social Care is finalising what will be required to deliver interoperability as efficiently as possible between CQC regulated adult social care providers and health care, including NHS England architecture. This will be bi-directional sharing.
We want to engage with the market on how to deliver interoperability as efficiently as possible.
The Department of Health and Social Care would like to engage with suppliers to understand the supplier market view of what will be required in any new contract including interoperability standards to enable information to be shared. This will include the emerging standards from NHS England Chief Technology Officer to enable information to be shared between Electronic Patient Records (EPRs), Digital Social Care Records and Shared Care Records in England, (and where necessary using national NHS England interoperability services).
The Department of Health and Social Care is also interested in understanding different options and costs to meet the requirement.
People at the Heart of Care outlined The Department of Health and Social Care plans for data, digital and technology within their 10-year vision for adult social care.
Data saves lives situated this in the context of the department's overarching vision for health and social care data.
The Digitalisation of Social Care Programme is supporting the move from paper to digital social care records (DSCRs) for CQC registered adult social care providers.
DSCRs support care teams to deliver outstanding, safe, personalised care by having the most accurate, up-to-date information at their fingertips, reducing the time care workers and managers spend on administrative tasks.
The Digitising Social Care (DiSC) Programme is aiming for 100% of CQC registered adult social care providers to have a Digital Social Care Record (DSCR) in place by March 2025.
60% of CQC registered adult social care providers have now adopted these (DSCRs), up from 40% providers in December 2021.
DSCRs enable greater information sharing between social care and NHS systems, supporting collaboration, and improving opportunities for joined up care around the person between local health systems and CQC registered social care providers. There is also the potential in the future to enable technologies that monitor care to share data directly with care providers via their DSCRs, and for new data to be made available in the future to reduce the burden of reporting to commissioners, regulators and statutory bodies.
Digital solutions and services that support interoperability using agreed data standards are key to this future.
By improving our use of data and digital technologies, we can deliver:
• more joined up care for people, with information shared effectively between professionals
• more time and resources for people who provide and commission care and support, so they can focus on providing high quality, personalised services
• greater understanding of people's care journeys - whether that be for people who draw on care or unpaid carers
• good practice, areas for improvement and research into how care is commissioned, provided and integrated with healthcare
• better management and oversight of the health and care system at local, regional and national levels, making more effective use of resources.
The nature of the sector, ranging from small local providers to national organisations, means that a locality based approach would not be appropriate for the sector - without some form of national infrastructure and standardisation, providers could end up being asked to use or connect to multiple systems.
The interoperability platform / services will support the care and treatment of patients and users of health and Adult Social Care services and support extraction of data to identified IT systems including shared care records.
The platform / service will need to support:
• the sharing of agreed real time / near real time sharing of data and documents for care and treatment (direct care) using information standards
• the sharing of agreed real time / near real time sharing of data and documents for secondary use (including commissioner and CQC reporting) to other IT systems
• authentication and authorisation to access the data and documents
• security of the solution including cyber and information governance technical controls
• supporting services including service desk / support desk
This Notice is being managed by NHS South, Central and West Commissioning Support Unit (SCW) on behalf of The Department of Health and Social Care. To express interest in market engagement please join the project within the Atamis e-procurement system no later than midday on 8th May 2024.
Please note that this Prior Information Notice does not act as a formal Advert, and failure to express interest in this PIN will in no way exclude a supplier from any formal procurement.
two.3) Estimated date of publication of contract notice
1 April 2025
Section four. Procedure
four.1) Description
four.1.8) Information about the Government Procurement Agreement (GPA)
The procurement is covered by the Government Procurement Agreement: No
Section six. Complementary information
six.3) Additional information
Transparency: Potential suppliers should note that, in accordance with Government's policies on transparency, the Department intends to publish the Invitation to Tender (ITT) document, and the text of any Contract awarded, subject to possible redaction at the discretion of the Department. Further information on transparency can be found at: http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/content/transparencyoverview .
This notice is for information only, and the Department reserves the right to discontinue the proposed tendering process and not award the contract. The information contained in this notice, including information relating to the nature and scope of the Department's requirements, the service classification of this requirement or the list of CPV codes, is only indicative of the Department's current thinking and is neither exhaustive nor binding.
The Department reserves the right at its absolute discretion to amend it at the time of issue of any further notices or at any other time. The publication of this notice in no way obliges the Department to commence with any competitive tender process. The Department is not and shall not be liable for any costs incurred by those expressing any interest in participating in the market consultation exercise advertised in this notice.
Interested providers will be able to view this opportunity via the live opportunities list on the 'Health Family' e-procurement system, Atamis. Click on 'View our Live Opportunities' from the home page, available on the following link: https://health-family.force.com/s/Welcome.
Once you have found the opportunity (via the search function, using the title or reference number), to gain full access to the relevant information you will need to click on 'Register interest' and send a message via the procurement portal with your organisations contact details for future correspondence.
If you are not already registered on the system, you will need to do so before gaining full access to the documentation and to be able to submit your expression of interest using the correspondence function within Atamis.
This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) prior information notice. The contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply.