New health IT will need departmental nods

New technology projects undertaken by the Health Service Executive (HSE) will have to be first approved by the Departments of Health and Finance, the Minister for Health told the Dáil.

Mary Harney came under renewed pressure at leaders' questions from the Fine Gael and Labour leaders on the cost of technology projects in the health services. Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said that €3 million had been spent on the Irish Health Services Portal with nothing to show for it, and tenders had been sought for a replacement project.

Ms Harney said she asked the HSE not to proceed with awarding any tender in that area, or any other technology area, unless it was cleared by the two departments.

"That will be the position in relation to all technology projects in the health area," she added.

Any IT project in the health area not already committed to would have to undergo a process of thorough evaluation.

"Now that we have a single organisation, and we have somebody with responsibility for IT, somebody with enormous experience in the health area, single lines of accountability in the future will hopefully avoid a situation where unnecessary public expenditure is invested in any project," she added.

As former minister for health Micheál Martin came in for renewed criticism, Ms Harney said he had "put the brakes on it" and refused to give any further funding to a hospital information system which was escalating in cost to €400 million.

Mr Kenny said the portal project was to establish a single internet point of contact for the public through which they could access health services throughout the State.

A contract to develop the portal was awarded in early 2004, and it had been launched by Mr Martin. The Department of Health followed up the launch by confirming that the portal was up and running.

But the portal was not up and running, it could not be seen, because it did not exist, said Mr Kenny. It had disappeared into the same black hole as e-voting and other issues. It was, said Mr Kenny, the most expensive photocall in the history of the State.

"Not alone has the portal disappeared, but the HSE has now re-tendered for a new job called the unified website which had all the characteristics of the last portal," he added. There was a ridiculously short time to tender.

Mr Kenny said that a review of the project in February by the Butler group had said it believed "that high-level ownership is essential if the project is to continue. Our strongest recommendation is that a sponsor be sought at the earliest opportunity".

Ms Harney said she was aware of the project. Work on the portal was suspended by the HSE last February because it seemed that the technology might not have been compatible with what was intended. Incredible as it might seem, she added, in the United States surveys had shown that only 28 per cent of technology ended up working on the first occasion.

She confirmed that work had been suspended in February and a tender for a smaller project, costing less than €250,000, had been advertised.

Labour leader Pat Rabbitte said it was a "case of closing the portal when the horse has bolted". He also claimed that Fianna Fáil backbenchers were now not coming into the House for leaders' questions.