Provision of Somerset Cancer Register including maintenance of the system

CPV: Database services

Procedure method

Award procedure without prior publication of a call for competition

Legal basis

CELEX · 32014L0024 Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (Directive 2014/24/EU)

Procurement category

Services

Notice status

Awarded without competition

Procurement threshold

Unspecified in notice

Regulatory regime

Standard

Commercial structure

Stand-alone contract (no framework)

Competition type

Direct award (no call for competition)

GPA / WTO covered

Unspecified in notice

Recurring procurement

Unspecified in notice

First published

24 May 2024, 09:17 BST

Last source update

24 May 2024, 09:17 BST

FTS notice number

2024/S 000-016403

Classification (CPV)

Database services

Delivery area

South West (UKK14)

Official registry OCID

ocds-h6vhtk-046a32 Find a Tender

Why no open competition

The procurement falls outside the scope of application of the directive

Published justification

The Trust is in a position to enter into a 36-month contract with Somerset NHS Foundation Trust if one of the exemptions from tendering set out in Regulation 32 applies. In this instance the Trusts wish to utilise Regulation 32(2)(b) to award a contract to Somerset NHS Foundation Trust.<br/><br/>Regulation 32(2)(b) is the sole supplier exemption and applies where:<br/><br/>

• The services can only be supplied by a particular supplier as competition is absent for technical reasons (“Test 1”)<br/><br/>
• There is no other reasonable alternative or substitute available (“Test 2”); and<br/><br/>
• The Trust has not artificially narrowed the parameters of the procurement in order to attempt to rely on the exemption (“Test 3”).<br/><br/>Test 1: The services can only be supplied by a particular supplier as competition is absent for technical reasons:<br/><br/>
• Only Cancer specific Electronic Patient Record (EPR) that captures the full patient referral to treatment pathway, whilst being the only solution that meets all the National Dataset Requirements: Cancer Outcomes Services Dataset, National Clinical Audits, Cancer Waiting Times.<br/><br/>
• Clinical Systems Interoperability: SCR is currently integrated with a number of the Trusts clinical system i.e. PAS / EPR and managing these mechanisms to ensure data integrity and quality is challenging and can only be managed by the incumbent supplier.<br/><br/>
• Clinical Systems Integration: SCR provides the mechanism to link clinical systems to instantly pull data directly in the patient record for both diagnostics i.e. HL7 links to Pathology, Radiology and Oscopy systems, and HL7 links to anticancer drugs, Radiotherapy and surgery systems which drives efficiency in data capture and patient outcomes. This type of interfacing is proprietary and requires a unique and in-depth knowledge of technical skill to manage and maintain them with only Somerset NHS Foundation Trust can provide.<br/><br/>Test 2: There is no other reasonable alternative or substitute available <br/><br/>
• Referral to treatment times: Increase in time to turnaround and treat patient whilst what would be multiple systems would be set-up to replicate the SCR service, which puts undue risk on a patient being treated.<br/><br/>
• Alternative systems exist for patient pathway management but aren’t Cancer specific and don’t meet national reporting requirements, meaning the acquisition and implementation of multiple systems would need to be joined together with Cancer reporting data needing to e uploaded manually to the national Cancer Waiting Times (CWT) system. All these factors would incur additional and unnecessary cost and resource.<br/><br/>Test 3: The Trust has not artificially narrowed the parameters of the procurement in order to attempt to rely on the exemption. <br/><br/>
• If an alternative system(s) providing the same level of functionality, integration and reporting had been available then they would have been considered as part of longer-term market engagement and sensing strategy, but at present, the market is limited to ony one provider in the form of SCR.<br/><br/>
• Additionally, had an alternative system(s) been available, it would only have been considered as part of the wider Cancer Alliance i.e. SWAG replacement activity, as the alliances strategic objectives is to rationalise and commonise software products / packages to ensure continuity and consistency across the patch.<br/><br/>Therefore, and in summary, procurement and the project team are satisfied that there is sufficient evidence of compliance to both SFI’s and PCR 2015, and the contract will be via supplier’s Terms and Conditions, having been reviewed and offering minimal risk to the Trust.

• Somerset NHS Foundation TrustAwarded supplierMonitor 110100 Lydeard House, Musgrove Park Hospital, Parkfield Drive, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 5DA, Taunton, South West, TA1 5DAContact phoneShow contact details

No document links were published on the notice.