The government has abandoned a €25 million tender for a fully integrated IT system at Mater Dei issued by the previous administration and is building a new one “internally”.
Sources close to Mater Dei yesterday told Times of Malta that the Patient Administration System – considered to be the backbone of the hospital’s IT system since 1997 – has been taken over by the new review team headed by former EU commissioner John Dalli.
It is being redesigned by a new consultant employed directly by Mr Dalli through the Health Ministry. According to the sources, this is being done without the Mater Dei IT department’s approval.
The Health Ministry confirmed a new PAS was being developed by “internal resources”; however, it declined to provide any details on who is actually working on the system and whether it is a one-man job or being conducted through a company. It also refused to say who awarded the contract and on what terms.
“It is in the process of being implemented and it is planned that this process will be finalised before the end of this year. When the task is finalised a press announcement will be issued,” a spokesman said.
In his review of the hospital, Mr Dalli was very critical of the current IT system and indicated that a new PAS was on the way.
Mr Dalli had said: “The review team immediately started to redesign and programme – in-house – a new, modern system with increased functionality.”
The report said this began after the Health Ministry was informed in April the ‘old’ PAS licence would not be renewed without signing a €2.5 million annual maintenance agreement with the supplier.
“Substantial hurdles were placed in the way of the development team from various quarters, including the suppliers, who seemed to have been promised a continuation of the contract,” it stated.
According to Mr Dalli, after the decision to start developing a new PAS, “the ministry was informed the licence would not expire after all and only the maintenance agreement would need to be renewed.”
The maintenance costs of the new PAS are not yet known.
What is the PAS?
The Patient Administration System (PAS) contains the demographics of all Maltese citizens and of all other people who have been in Government hospitals and health centres.
All A&E (accident and emergency), inpatient, outpatient, day case and ward-attended episodes are recorded on it.
Does Malta have a PAS?
A PAS was introduced in 1997 following an international tender awarded to Clinicom – which later was acquired by Computer Services Corporation – a global multinational.
It currently has more than 4,000 active user accounts.
Has there been an upgrade since 1997?
In 2006, a tender was awarded to iSoft – another international company – to develop an Integrated Information System (IHIS) that had to integrate the PAS with new systems such as digital data connected to laboratory tests, X-rays and MRI scans. The new system had to be built in two phases.
In 2011, a new call for tender was issued for Phase 2 with the aim of replacing and migrating the ‘old’ PAS on to the new one.
What is the state of play?
The tender for Phase 2 was in the process of being awarded during the last PN administration and two bidders – made up of international firms – were shortlisted.
The process was stopped in April 2013 as soon as Labour was elected. The reason, according to the report, was “the price of €25 million being quoted and the system was not considered to have been property defined”.
Instead “the review board immediately started to redesign and programme, in-house, a new modern system with increased functionality”.
This new system is expected to be introduced “by the end of this year” according to a Health Ministry spokesman.