Cerner and Fujitsu reach agreement on Southern Cluster

US health IT supplier, Cerner Corporation, and local service provider for England’s Southern NHS Cluster, Fujitsu, have agreed a memorandum of understanding for supplying clinical software in place of IDX Systems Corporation’s Carecast.

Fujitsu and Connecting for Health, the agency in charge of the National Programme for IT, issued an announcement today saying: “We can confirm that a memorandum of understanding has been agreed between Fujitsu Services and NHS Connecting for Health for use of Cerner Corporation software for the NHS Connecting for Health Southern cluster.”

No further details were announced. It is understood that more information will be made available when a formal contract is signed. A memorandum of understanding is a type of agreement described in one definition as “more formal than a gentleman’s agreement but less formal than a contract.”

Cerner has been the favoured replacement for IDX for many months since it was first revealed that work on the common clinical solution for the Southern Cluster, which stretches from Kent to Cornwall, was falling badly behind schedule. IDX will continue to provide the core clinical records software for the London Cluster.

An announcement about the termination of IDX’s agreement with Fujitsu was made on 1 June. It said then that Cerner would be brought in  “subject to contract”.