CGI (NYSE: GIB) (TSX: GIB.A) and West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which manages hospitals in Watford, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead, have partnered to upgrade the Trust’s IT infrastructure to help improve patient care and safety through better access to information for clinicians and other staff. The five-year contract is valued at approximately £25.5million.
CGI will develop an infrastructure and service management program that supports staff across the Trust’s three hospitals and at additional smaller healthcare sites throughout west Hertfordshire via an outcome-based contract. This will result in more reliable and robust IT services and support, including faster networks, improved telephone systems and increased IT security. A new 24/7 help desk for nurses, doctors and other staff who have IT issues also will be put in place. New or upgraded devices will be issued to staff who need them, including PCs, laptops, tablets and other electronic devices.
Samantha Jones, Trust chief executive said: “This is great news for our hospitals, our patients and our staff. The investment we are making to update our technology and improve our IT services will without doubt help us to deliver better and safer care for our patients. Our plans will radically overhaul the way we use IT across our hospitals and the benefits are wide reaching, including speeding up the time we are able to see and treat our patients. It will also make sure our systems are as secure as they possibly can be and, importantly, make life a lot easier for our staff.”
Lisa Emery, Trust chief information officer said: “Staff need access to the most up-to-date patient information, which will be delivered by using the latest technology, including mobile devices. It will deliver real benefits for our patients.”
Calum Macleod, vice president of healthcare for CGI in the UK said: “CGI is very excited to bring our experience of helping to modernize the delivery of healthcare to Watford, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead hospitals. We look forward to working with the Trust to support its vision of providing consistently good care to its patients.”
About West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust
West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust is a large acute trust serving people from across Hertfordshire, north London and further afield. The Trust is made up of Watford, St Albans and Hemel Hempstead hospitals and sees about 600,000 patients a year. The Trust is one of the largest employers locally, with around 4,500 staff and volunteers.
About CGI
Founded in 1976, CGI Group Inc. is the fifth largest independent information technology and business process services firm in the world. Approximately 68,000 professionals serve thousands of global clients from offices and delivery centers across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific, leveraging a comprehensive portfolio of services including high-end business and IT consulting, systems integration, application development and maintenance, infrastructure management as well as a wide range of proprietary solutions. With annual revenue in excess of C$10 billion and an order backlog of approximately C$19 billion, CGI shares are listed on the TSX (GIB.A) and the NYSE (GIB). Website: www.cgi.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
All statements in this press release that do not directly and exclusively relate to historical facts constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of that term in Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are “forward-looking information” within the meaning of Canadian securities laws. These statements and this information represent CGI’s intentions, plans, expectations and beliefs, and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, of which many are beyond the control of the Company. These factors could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. These factors include but are not restricted to: the timing and size of new contracts; acquisitions and other corporate developments; the ability to attract and retain qualified members; market competition in the rapidly evolving IT industry; general economic and business conditions; foreign exchange and other risks identified in the press release, in CGI’s annual and quarterly Management’s Discussion and Analysis (“MD&A”), in CGI’s Annual Report, in CGI’s Annual Report on Form 40-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (filed on EDGAR at www.sec.gov), and in the Company’s Annual Information Form filed with the Canadian securities authorities (filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com), as well as assumptions regarding the foregoing. The words “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “foresee,” “plan,” and similar expressions and variations thereof, identify certain of such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. In particular, statements relating to future performance are forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. CGI disclaims any intention or obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements or on this forward-looking information.
For more information
Investors
Lorne Gorber
Senior Vice-President, Global Communications and Investor Relations
lorne.gorber@cgi.com
+1 514-841-3355
Local Media
Jenny Thorpe
UK External Communications
Jenny.thorpe@cgi.com
+44 (0)7771 815428
Kelly Hickman
Communications Officer
West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust
+44 (0) 1923 436 281
info@whht.nhs.uk
