Microsoft denies ‘tailored software’ offer for NHS

Microsoft have denied weekend reports that they are to rewrite their core products on behalf of the NHS, but confirmed that they are in discussions with the National Programme for IT (NPfIT) on how the firm’s software can be best configured to support delivery of the national programme.

Neil Jordan, head of healthcare for Microsoft UK denied a report printed in The Times on Saturday, 21 February, that Microsoft was offering to specifically tailor versions of its Office and Windows software for the NHS to help win a major software licensing deal.

Quoted in The Times, Richard Granger, NHS director general of IT, said: “They (Microsoft) are talking about making specific products for the health sector . . . taking Office and converting it into a look and feel that would be appropriate for clinicians. It will be the first of its kind . . . a generic platform specified for use by medical professionals."

Granger will today (Monday, 22 February)  meet with Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s chief executive, at Microsoft’s HQ in Redmond, Seattle, to discuss a new deal that could be worth several hundred million pounds over the next decade. Last month Bill Gates, the co-founder and chairman of Microsoft, met with health secretary John Reid and Granger while on a visit to London.

A NPfIT spokesperson confirmed to E-Health Insider that discussions with Microsoft were continuing: "“Discussions are ongoing with Microsoft and other suppliers.  We will make an announcement in due course.  Until that time specific details remain commercially confidential.”

In December Granger announced plans to review alternatives to Windows and Office, specifically Sun’s Java-based desktop system: “Sun’s innovation and flexible approach to addressing the business challenges of the NHS are an example which we would encourage all IT vendors to note." Microsoft have apparantly taken note.

According to the NPfIT the evaluation of Sun’s Java Desktop system, originally due to last three months, are now due to be completed in June.

In October 2001 the NHS became one of Microsoft’s top five customers globally after it signed a three year corporate licensing agreement with the world’s leading software company. 

Whether the NPfIT’s evaluation of Microsoft alternatives is mainly a negotiating ploy remains to be seen. Significantly, local service provider (LSP) contracts for three of the five NHS regions were awarded to LSPs offering iSOFT’s Lorenzo products, currently under development, and based on Microsoft technology, as their main clinical application provider.

IDX, the main clinical application provider for the two remaining regions also uses Microsoft’s technologies extensively.

iSOFT is a Microsoft development partner, with its Lorenzo products based on Microsoft’s .Net architecture.  In addition, the Lorenzo products are said to be specifically designed to be fully integrated with Microsoft’s Office 2003 suite of applications.

In an October 2003 press release iSOFT made clear that full integration with Microsoft’s Office 2003 applications was central to Lorenzo and the ability to rapidly deploy it across large healthcare communities.

"Excel 2003 will empower our LSP partners to download entire system configurations of Lorenzo and facilitate identical deployments across substantial healthcare regions, such as an NHS Cluster.  Using the improved structure of the data stored in Excel 2003, we are able to roll out similar configurations on new sites much more quickly with greater ease and reliability."

The release went on to state that "Word 2003’s XML integration into Lorenzo allows seamlessly integrated access to clinical correspondence, which can be automatically generated from content within the patient record.  Word 2003 will enable us to store this clinical correspondence within the patient record rather than in a separate file store, as is currently required."

Similarly, on Outlook, the release stated: "Outlook 2003 forms a core component of the Lorenzo functionality. This allows us to pr email but also tasks, reminders and alerts generated from activity in the patient record, which result in the requirement for some action from the healthcare professional in the context of collaborative delivery of healthcare."

With Lorenzo being built on .Net architecture and specifically designed to integrate with Microsoft’s Office applications it would be somewhat surprising if the NHS National Programme for IT were to now decide to move away from Microsoft products.  What may happen instead is an announcement based on Microsoft fully integrating its Office products with the main clinical applications already procured by the national programme.

Previously

NHS evaluates Windows alternative