The firm says it is the only provider to offer HSCN connectivity directly from a government-approved data centre, offering dedicated server hosting and colocation alongside the full-service British cloud portfolio, eCloud.
After working closely with NHS Digital throughout 2018, UKFast is now launching client solutions across the new Health and Social Care Network, which replaces the outgoing N3 Network.
Organisations providing IT services to the NHS are taking the opportunity to connect directly to the new healthcare network through UKFast’s data centre complex, with a significant number of clients signed up and ready launch services on the network in the coming weeks.
UKFast CEO Lawrence Jones said: “We're meeting people from NHS Trusts who want to unlock new technologies like AI, big data and machine learning. We’re enabling them to do this by plugging in and accessing burstable cloud facilities at a moment's notice, which is something they just can't do on N3.
“HSCN is an incredibly exciting step for the UK healthcare community and when aligned with our instantly accessible AI and cloud workloads we are providing a platform that enables innovation faster and at a lower cost.
“The NHS needs to be certain where its sensitive patient data is, so connecting HSCN to our fully owned, UK-based data centres makes perfect sense.”
Clients set to launch on HSCN through UKFast’s eCloud include an AI software provider and a global payroll service, using HSCN to connect with NHS customers and securing the transfer of NHS payroll data.
There are currently 13,500 organisations using an outdated N3 connection that are now required to migrate services to HSCN by August 2020.
Director of Public Sector at UKFast, Stephen Jewell, said: “We’re closely engaged with both clinical teams within the health service and with the HSCN team at NHS Digital to ensure that we are able to offer the right technical solutions to enable digital transformation within healthcare and meet the vision and potential of the new network.
“By offering a cost-effective and flexible HSCN-connected cloud, UKFast is supporting cloud service providers that have only been able to deliver to private healthcare practitioners up to this point.
“This exciting development opens up opportunities in the wider health and social care community and helps to bring new and innovative technologies into the marketplace. The demand to be connected to HSCN through our data centres is massive and every day we're seeing more and more inquiries.”
UKFast is approved by the government to supply a wide range of offerings through a number of government frameworks. Services include cloud hosting range eCloud, disaster recovery, SaaS products, cybersecurity solutions and CDN.