From BizTalk to Health Connect: a TIE Migration.
When an NHS Trust was looking to migrate from BizTalk to InterSystems Health Connect, ReStart stepped in to assist with the migration of over 34 interfaces and provide integration consultancy and bespoke development.
The Challenge: Migrating Away from BizTalk
NHS Trusts use Trust Integration Engines (TIE) to handle messaging between various applications and data sources to maintain the flow of real-time patient data between departments and external care sources.
After the NHS Trust’s legacy system, Biztalk, became unsupported they selected Intersystem Health Connect following an options appraisal as its next TIE. ReStart was then brought in to provide integration consultancy and bespoke development to support the Trust in the migration from the legacy TIE to the new platform which involved mapping, transforming and comparing messages to ensure that all the relevant information was properly carried over.
The Process: Collaborative Effort and Flexible Approach
Although the original request was for ReStart to migrate 5 interfaces, this expanded over time. During the two-and-a-half-year project, ReStart worked closely with the Trust’s in-house team, providing an extra set of hands to support the transition.
Kirsty Cobb, IT Product Delivery Manager at the NHS Trust, said: “ReStart were very flexible throughout the project and we could really rely on them. We were always happy to pass things over knowing that it was in good hands and that when they would hand it back to us it was going to be in a good place. It’s like they became part of our team.”
The partnership between ReStart and the Trust was highly collaborative, with ReStart providing technical knowledge and expertise to help the Trust overcome obstacles and streamline the migration plan. Chris Pursey, IT Principal Development Consultant at the NHS Trust, said: “It was extremely useful to have ReStart on hand to answer technical queries. Some parts of the migration proved to be tricky, and it was great to be able to give them a call and talk about the technical side of things. They helped us figure out how to overcome the obstacles we were facing whilst ensuring we were following best practices. We’ve learnt a lot from them, and the more we learn the better we are as a development team. Overall, it’s been a great partnership.”
The Results: Successful Transition to Health Connect
The Trust has now fully transitioned to Health Connect with the help of ReStart, fulfilling its initial desire to outsource the early phases of the migration to streamline the migration plan. Looking forward, the Trust hopes to integrate more systems and continue its working relationship with ReStart in the future.
