Malta awards Euros 15.8m health IT contract

The Maltese Government has awarded US Affiliated Computer Services, Inc a seven-year, Euros 15.8m ($21m) contract to provide modern health information systems.

The new agreement is the first phase of the Maltese Government’s Integrated Health Information System (IHIS), which aims to improve the management of healthcare records.

ACS will provide the hardware, software, and expertise needed to maintain laboratory information systems, radiology information systems, picture archiving and communications systems (PACS).

A key part of the programme is to deliver integrated digital healthcare systems in Malta’s new 850-bed Mater Dei Hospital, the nation’s largest healthcare facility.

"This is another milestone reached by the government in its endeavour to give the Maltese people the best in healthcare," said Frank Mifsud, Malta’s Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, the Elderly and Community Care.

"These integrated healthcare information systems should put our patients’ minds at rest that their medical care is being dealt with effectively and in the most professional way. These systems will also open avenues for the planned future expansion of our healthcare network."

In support of the IHIS programme ACS will integrate the new systems it provides with existing systems and medical equipment currently used by Mater Dei Hospital.

Charles Bracken, managing director, ACS Healthcare Solutions, said: "Our breadth of healthcare knowledge and expertise, gained over more than 20 years, combined with our integrated, healthcare-specific services and tools, enable us to build effective solutions for healthcare delivery systems worldwide."

ACS Healthcare Solutions, which is a subsidiary of Affiliated Computer Services Ltd, claims to have more than 4,000 healthcare clients and employ approximately 2,000 dedicated IT healthcare employees.