NSW government earmarks $1 billion for major IT projects

State government splashes out to boost eHealth records system

The New South Wales government plans to spend close to $1 billion on major ICT and digital projects, the 2017-18 budget reveals.

The budget, handed down today, earmarks $522.5 million for health-related technology projects.

The government plans to spend $236.2 million on its integrated digital patient records program, including the roll out of the electronic medication management system to more NSW public hospitals and linking NSW Ambulance and hospital electronic medical records in “real time”.

The state government also expects to spend $286.3 million to “enhance the digital infrastructure that supports clinical and other health-related systems across the state”.  

“It will complete the fast, secure statewide network at the remaining sites which clinicians use to access data anywhere, any time,” budget documents state. The funding includes migrating some existing hardware into the GovDC facilities.  

In addition funding will support more mobile digital healthcare and “next-generation video conferencing for clinicians and patients”.  

The government will spend $163.2 million over two years, beginning in 2017-19, to boost communications services used by emergency services.  

In total, $241.7 million is expected to be spent by Sydney Water on its major tech transformation projects, including rolling out a new billing and CRM system and the implementation of a unified ERP system.  

Earlier this year the utility revealed it had selected a consortium led by Wipro to design, build and run the new systems, as part of its 'once in a generation' tech overhaul.  

Today’s budget also included $51 million as part of the four-year, $100 million Policing for Tomorrow Technology Fund.  

Other major ICT projects outlined in budget documents include $18.1 million to support integrated ICT systems across Office of Environment and Heritage and Local Land Services and $12.8 million in capital expenditure (and $10.3 million in recurrent funds) from 2017-18 to 2020-21 for the NSW Electoral Commission to build a “an end-to-end solution for the disclosure of political donations, expenditure and the lodgement of public funding claims” as well as for improvements to iVote. The government said it would spend $11.8 million on a cloud-based development approvals system to help smaller and regional councils replace paper processes.  

The government is also planning to spend  $3.5 million in new funding ($3.1 million in 2017-18 and $400,000 in 2018-19) in an overhaul of the telephony system at NSW parliament and the state’s 98 electoral offices.

Service NSW will receive $13 million in 2017-18 to invest in “underlying digital capability and transaction on-boarding to expand the range and depth of its services”.

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Tags NSW healthnswNSW Government

More about NSW Electoral CommissionOffice of Environment and HeritageSydney WaterTechnologyWipro

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