Posted on 01st October 2012
New System for Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) in Ireland
The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) is a statutory, government-funded agency in Ireland, established in May 2007 and receiving its powers and mandate under the Health Act 2007, which monitors the safety and quality of the healthcare and social care systems in the Republic of Ireland. The Authority is responsible for driving improvements in the quality and safety of healthcare and social care on behalf of patients, developing standards, monitoring compliance with standards and carrying out investigations where there are reasonable grounds to do so. HIQA also carries out national Health Technology Assessments (HTA) across the Irish health system, where HTAs objectively evaluate new technologies from a clinical point of view. Additionally, it advises on the collection and sharing of information across Ireland’s health and social care services, evaluating and publishing information about the delivery and performance of these services.
The Capita IB Solutions tender was one of many tenders submitted in response to a formal procurement process, and was shortlisted along with a number of other potential suppliers. This was followed by a rigorous evaluation process, with reference checks of a number of Capita IB Solutions’ existing clients.
The Authority currently has almost 180 staff members and is increasing in size as it takes on more regulatory responsibilities. The current finance system in the Authority was recognised as an entry-level system, and, as the Authority has grown in recent years, so too have the demands on this finance system. This increased demand necessitated the introduction of several manual processes and controls, which aimed to ensure both consistency and accuracy. However, it was recognised that these measures were cumbersome and inefficient, and it was believed that a more automated, e-friendly system would be far less manual and would result in increased operational efficiencies for the Authority.
Capita IB Solutions offered a feature-rich product with Integra and proven implementation services that best met the Authority’s requirements, in particular with respect to the comprehensiveness and relevance of functionality, its financial reporting capability, its integration with other systems, and its product support.
The primary expected benefits of the new Integra finance solution are a decrease in operational workload through high levels of automation, flexibility to the changing needs of the Authority and better reporting capability.
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