British people don’t trust Palantir – it’s not too late to reverse the NHS’s dependence on it | Ben Coleman
Summary
The article says the UK government must decide by Christmas whether to extend Palantir’s £330 million contract to run NHS England’s Federated Data Platform, which is due to end next March. It argues that the NHS should be able to move its applications between suppliers and calls for open standards, a review of dependencies, and a clearer assessment of the platform’s effects.Key Facts
- The NHS owns or has rights to use applications built on Palantir’s platform, but some arrangements may end with the contract, according to a ministerial response cited in the article.
- The government said it would explore moving applications to another platform only if the contract ends and declined to audit which Palantir tools hospital trusts rely on.
- The national data guardian has raised concerns about interoperability, supplier lock-in and data sovereignty, and called for consideration of open standards.
- The article cites Greater Manchester’s integrated care board and NHS OneLondon as examples of NHS-run or NHS-supported data platforms.
- The Guardian reported that 16 trusts and health boards said they do not use the platform; the article also cites a British Medical Journal report that a third of signed-up trusts have never logged in.
- Palantir claims the platform reduced discharge delays by 14%, while the Health Foundation found no noticeable change, according to the article.
- The article says Chelsea and Westminster Hospital accounts for 84% of the claimed national reduction in outpatient waiting lists, and NHS England says cause and effect have not been proven.
- A full evaluation of the platform is not due until 2029; NHS England chief executive Jim Mackey told a parliamentary committee that an independent review now would be helpful.
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