Data, Centers, Australia, Shared Services

Data Centers to close as part of Australia's shared services plan

Australia's NSW Health is pulling the plug on data centers across the state as it rolls out information systems to support the department's $58 million a year shared services savings plan.

The consolidation comes two years after NSW Health decided to centralize the delivery of business and clinical systems. It follows the launch two years ago of an ambitious but slow-moving plan to slash public health costs by introducing shared financial, human resources, procurement, food and linen services across the state's hospitals.

HealthTechnology division general manager Frank Cordingley said the department was hosting Oracle financial software for two area health services ahead of a statewide shift to the system next year.

A centralized e-procurement platform using Oracle software has been rolled out to several area health services and HealthTechnology has begun hosting patient management software for a number of hospitals.

The data centers are being consolidated into three operations that will eventually host clinical and business software for all state hospitals. A Newcastle data centre will host business applications, while clinical software will be run from the two Sydney facilities.

Other data centers face the chop as further area health services are brought into the centralized model.

NSW Health is also considering plans for statewide hosting of human resources software, but HealthTechnology is yet to receive a timetable for installation.

HealthTechnology will host the financial, human resources and e-procurement software that underpins core elements of NSW Health's shared services plan, but transactions will be managed by the HealthSupport unit.

PricewaterhouseCoopers had been contracted to help HealthSupport develop business models by the end of this year.

HealthTechnology, meanwhile, is negotiating with a contractor to assist its project management office in centralizing business and clinical applications.
 
by Ben Woodhead