Background
Karolinska University Hospital is one of Europe’s largest hospitals, and together with Karolinska Institute, they lead medical development in Sweden. As Karolinska continues to accelerate its investment in IT and digitalization, to take advantage of the continuous modernisation of healthcare information standards, Karolinska has begun the development of an open and standardised Digital Health Platform to create more and new opportunities for data-driven care and research.
Karolinska’s Digital Health Platform will collect, harmonise, and provide data from multiple systems to provide IT support to the various units and sections of the hospital. The platform and its associated applications will increase efficiency and productivity, reduce administration, raise quality, and provide better support for research. This will be achieved through the platform’s technical capabilities, for example, through efficient access to data through consolidated access to data sources from multiple systems.
Functionality in existing applications can gradually be replaced by standardised modules running on the new platform; a shift that will provide a flexible and adaptable solution that can also integrate new applications developed in the future.
Karolinska has made a strategic choice to base parts of the Digital Health Platform on openEHR-based technology. We believe that the openEHR-based standardisation has an important role to play in the strategy to reach the following goals:
- Ability to innovate and develop – faster adaptation of IT systems to meet the constantly changing and developing healthcare requirements, including a more efficient development process.
- Improved governance – increased control of stored health record data and increased reuse of information structures within and between applications.
- Efficiency – increased freedom of action by storing data in a vendor neutral and open format.
Karolinska Framework Agreement
A framework agreement is an agreement between Karolinska and Better (as well as other suppliers), specifying that they will provide a product or service with predetermined conditions over a defined period.
Better has been awarded a framework agreement in the following areas:
- OpenEHR based Software,
- Software for openEHR content Creation and Transformation,
- Consultant services.
The Framework Agreement can be used for call-off by the procuring authorities mentioned below. These are referred to as authorised/call-off authorities:
- Karolinska University Hospital 232100-006
- Södersjukhuset AB (SÖS), org.nr 556595-7403
- Södertälje Hospital AB, org.nr 556775-9922
- Danderyd Hospital AB (DS, org.nr 556575-6169
- Tiohundra AB, org.nr 556595-7395
- St: Erik’s Eye Hospital, org.nr 5565 74-3589
- Ambulance Care in Greater Stockholm AB (AISAB), org.nr 556461- 6695
- Region Gotland, org.nr 212000-0803
- Health and Medical Care Administration (HSF), org.nr 232100-0016
- Stockholm County Healthcare Area (SLSO), org.nr 232100-0016
During the framework agreement period (2+1+1 years), call-offs of different products and services can be done by the above-mentioned organisations jointly or separately.
Karolinska and Better
Better is dedicated to empowering Karolinska organisations, enabling them to customise and tailor solutions independently without any vendor dependence. This commitment aligns with Karolinska's emphasis on an information-centric, standardised technology platform.
Recognising the strategic importance of Karolinska’s initiatives, Better is convinced that the work we will achieve through this framework will resonate and impact other care institutions not only in Sweden but also worldwide.
