SOFTCAT PLC

Careful - The CAREFUL Platform

CAREFUL enables health and social care teams to easily communicate and collaborate on critical information in order to make faster, better and safer decisions. Digital workflow for handover, referrals, and task management supported by secure chat and AI technology replace informal tools and enhance existing legacy systems.

Features

• Dynamic patient lists with team responsibility
• automated updates from legacy systems

Benefits

• Clear task accountability ensures no actions are lost
• Faster access to critical information enables better clinical decisions

• Free trial available

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at psitq@softcat.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.

Framework

G-Cloud 15

Service ID

158138683713818

Contact

Public Sector Tenders
01628 403403
psitq@softcat.com

About your service

• Service categories:

  Applications

  Production and operations

  Service industry and public sector operations

  • Healthcare
  • Adult Social Care
  • Children's Social Care
  • Other
• Multi cloud support: No

Service scope

• Software add-on or extension: Yes, but can also be used as a standalone service
• What software services is the service an extension to: CAREFUL can stand alone but can also extend legacy Electronic Patient Record (EPR) Systems providing rel time coordination of handovers, referrals, and task management. AVT-generated documentation can be transferred to EMR systems. CAREFUL Integrates with all standard EMR systems, PACS, and laboratory systems via HL7/FHIR.
• Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
• Service constraints: Requires access to internet. No stand-alone data acquisition in order to prevent risks from on-device storage.
• System requirements:
  • Internet connectivity via wired, WiFi, or 4G mobile signal
  • Modern web browser with JavaScript enabled for desktop access
  • IOS or Android for native mobile application usage
  • Secure VPN for integration

User support

• Email or online ticketing support: Yes
• Support response times: Level 1 support (password changes etc) charged as an add-on service; Level 2 (IT dept support) and Level 3 support (bug fixes) offered as standard. Enhancements costed separately. Level 2 responses within 8 working hours; level 3 usually within 4 hours to 3 working days depending on criticality.
• User can manage status and priority of support tickets: No
• Phone support: No
• Web chat support: No
• Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
• Support levels: Level 1 (optional): End-user support for password resets and basic queries, charged as add-on. Level 2 (included): Technical resolution for IT dept and admins, 8 hours working days, via email/SMS. Level 3 (included): Bug fixes - 4 hours to 3 working days depending on criticality. Professional services: pricing by negotiation based on rate sheet. Enhancements costed separately.
• Support available to third parties: No

Onboarding and offboarding

• Getting started: Individual teams can onboard with online support. For larger institutions we offer a longer change-management service. Typically this would involve: 8-week implementation with weeks 1-2 setup/ADT integration; weeks 3-4 pilot teams; weeks 5-6 high-volume pathways; weeks 7-8 full rollout; weeks 9-12 hypercare. Specialist trainers, clinical champions, train-the-trainer. User guides, videos, online docs. Minimal training required for proficiency.
• Service documentation: Yes
• Documentation formats:
  • HTML
  • PDF
  • Other
• Other documentation formats: Video tutorials (MP4)
• End-of-contract data extraction: All transactions can be downloaded and archived as required as part of decommissioning service.
• End-of-contract process: Contractual access to data (as above) is part of the contract. Storage or additional processing will be negotiated and charged separately.
• Documentation accessibility standard: None or don’t know
• How the documentation is accessible: N/a

Using the service

• Web browser interface: Yes
• Supported browsers:
  • Microsoft Edge
  • Firefox
  • Chrome
  • Safari
  • Opera
  • Other
• Application to install: Yes
• Compatible operating systems: Other
• Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
• Differences between the mobile and desktop service: Full functional parity. Mobile optimized for touch with streamlined navigation. All features accessible including AI voice recording. Desktop offers expanded views for larger screens.
• Service interface: No
• User support accessibility: WCAG 2.2 AA
• API: Yes
• What users can and can't do using the API: All application functions are available through API - accessed directly via VPN or via HL7/FHIR/MIRTH integration. All integrations are undertaken as part of Level 2 or Level 3 support and are not directly available to end-users - only to suitably qualified healthcare IT departments.
• API documentation: Yes
• API documentation formats: Open API (also known as Swagger)
• API sandbox or test environment: Yes
• Customisation available: Yes
• Description of customisation: Admins can customize: team structures, membership; handover fields per team; patient status definitions; action templates; dashboard views; reporting; integration mappings. Configuration via web application, no coding required. MIRTH uses JavaScript transformers updatable by suitably qualified IT department personnel.

Scaling

• Independence of resources: Azure Kubernetes auto-scaling (3-11 nodes at >50%). Independent microservice scaling. Azure Service Bus with RabbitMQ prevents message loss. Multi-tenant with separate database instances. Load balancing across availability zones. Kubernetes health probes 10 seconds, <30 second recovery. Azure 99.95% SLA.

Analytics

• Service usage metrics: Yes
• Metrics types: Infrastructure metrics: uptime/availability, API response times, concurrent users, storage usage, error rates, request volumes. Application metrics: active users, login sessions, support ticket volumes. Metrics available via dashboard.
• Reporting types:
  • Real-time dashboards
  • Regular reports
  • Reports on request
• Resource tagging: No
• FOCUS resource tagging: No

Resellers

• Supplier type: Reseller (no extras)
• Organisation whose services are being resold: CAREFUL

Staff security

• Staff security clearance: Other security clearance
• Government security clearance: None

Asset protection

• Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
• Data storage and processing locations: United Kingdom
• User control over data storage and processing locations: No
• Datacentre security standards: Managed by a third party
• Penetration testing frequency: At least once a year
• Penetration testing approach: NCSC approved service provider
• Protecting data at rest:
  • Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v4.0
  • Encryption of all physical media
  • Other
• Other data at rest protection approach: Through Microsoft Azure managed services
• Data sanitisation process: Yes
• Equipment disposal approach: Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001
• Data sanitisation type:
  • Deleted data can’t be directly accessed / Cryptographic Erasure
  • Data Erasure

Data importing and exporting

• Data export approach: All export requests will be negotiated as part of Level 3 support unless additional processing is required.
• Data export formats:
  • CSV
  • Other
• Other data export formats:
  • JSON
  • XML
  • SQL
  • Audio files (MP3/WAV)
  • Plain text transcripts
  • JPG/MP4 for attachments
• Data import formats:
  • CSV
  • Other
• Other data import formats:
  • JSON
  • HL7 v2 ADT messages (A01, A02, A03, A08)
  • FHIR resources

Data-in-transit protection

• Data protection between buyer and supplier networks:
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • IPsec or TLS VPN gateway
• Data protection within supplier network:
  • TLS (version 1.2 or above)
  • IPsec or TLS VPN gateway
  • Other
• Other protection within supplier network: Kubernetes RBAC with Azure Managed Identity, service mesh encryption

Availability and resilience

• Guaranteed availability: Minimum 99.5% monthly uptime (<3.5 hours unplanned/month). Azure SLA 99.95% for AKS. Monitored via Azure Monitor and Prometheus. SLA breaches by negotiation.
• Approach to resilience: Azure Kubernetes across 3 Availability Zones (physically separate datacentres). Automatic failover, no data loss. Azure SQL and PostgreSQL zone-redundant, synchronous replication. Point-in-time restore. Backups every 24 hours, transaction logs every 15 minutes (RPO <15 min, RTO <4 hours). Stateless microservices, horizontal scaling. Kubernetes health probes 10 seconds, <30 second recovery. No single point of failure. RabbitMQ and Azure Service Bus ensure zero message loss.
• Outage reporting: Email and phone alerts to IT departments.

Identity and authentication

• User authentication needed: Yes
• User authentication: Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
• Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: RBAC and Azure identity management with IP restrictions. MFA for sensitive information within-app.
• Access restriction testing frequency: At least once a year
• Management access authentication: Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)

Audit information for users

• Access to user activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long user audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• Access to supplier activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
• How long supplier audit data is stored for: At least 12 months
• How long system logs are stored for: At least 12 months

Security governance

• Named board-level person responsible for service security: Yes
• Security governance certified: Yes
• Security governance standards:
  • CSA CSM version 4.0
  • Other
• Other security governance standards: Cyber Essentials Plus, NHS Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPT) - org 8JR69
• Information security policies and processes: Risk Committee with independent DPO where data security and other risks are monitored taking responses from company-wide reporting system and weekly technical updates.
• Software Security Code of Practice: Yes

Operational security

• Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
• Configuration and change management approach: Git version control, protected main branch, code review. All changes reviewed; emergency expedited. CI/CD: sandbox→demo→production with manual approval. Rolling updates, zero-downtime, instant rollback. Automated testing. Staging mirrors production. All changes documented with audit trail.
• Vulnerability management type: Complies with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0 or SSAE-18 / ISAE 3402
• Vulnerability management approach: Automated dependency scanning in CI/CD (npm/pip audit). Weekly infrastructure scanning via Azure Security Center. Annual CREST penetration testing. CVSS scoring. Critical <14 days, High <30 days, Medium <90 days. Security register tracking. Automated rescanning confirms remediation. Monthly dashboard, quarterly trend analysis.
• Protective monitoring type: Complies with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v4.0 or SSAE-18 / ISAE 3402
• Protective monitoring approach: Centralized logging via Azure Log Analytics and Sentry.io: authentication, data access, admin actions, API calls, security alerts, errors. Real-time monitoring via Azure Monitor, Prometheus. Security events via Azure Security Center. Rules-based alerts for attack patterns. Anomaly detection. Immediate alerts via Slack to security team. 24/7 monitoring. Security logs: 12 months operational, 7 years for critical events.
• Incident management type: Complies with a recognised standard, for example, CSA CCM v4.0 or ISO/IEC 27035:2011 or SSAE-18 / ISAE 3402
• Incident management approach: Detection via monitoring, user reports, security alerts (24/7). Classification: P1-Critical, P2-High, P3-Medium, P4-Low. P1: immediate all-hands, <1 hour. Clear escalation to senior management. Root cause analysis. Security forensics. All incidents tracked with timeline. Resolution via CI/CD (critical: days, standard: weekly). Post-incident reports within 5 days. Lessons learned at monthly Risk & Compliance. Regular updates during outages.
• Post-quantum cryptography secure: No

Secure development

• Approach to secure software development best practice: Supplier-defined process

Public sector networks

• Connection to public sector networks: No

Pricing

• Discount for educational organisations: No
• Free trial available: Yes
• Description of free trial: Unrestricted
• Link to free trial: By arrangement only

Discount percentage by annual call-off contract value (excluding VAT)

• Less than £250,000: 0%
• Between £250,000 and £500,000: 0%
• Between £500,001 and £1,000,000: 0%
• Between £1,000,001 and £2,500,000: 0%
• Between £2,500,001 and £5,000,000: 0%
• Over £5,000,001: 0%

Non-mandatory Standards and certifications

• ISO/IEC 27001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO/IEC 27001: NQA
• ISO/IEC 27001 accreditation date: Monday 8 April 2024
• What the ISO/IEC 27001 doesn’t cover: N/A
• ISO 28000:2022 certification: No
• ISO 9001 certification: Yes
• Who accredited the ISO 9001 certification: NQA
• ISO 9001 accreditation date: Monday 8 April 2024
• What the ISO 9001 doesn’t cover: N/A
• Quality management systems (QMS): Yes
• CSA STAR certification: No
• PCI certification: Yes
• Who accredited the PCI DSS certification: SecurityMetrics
• PCI DSS accreditation date: Friday 10 January 2025
• What the PCI DSS doesn’t cover: N/A
• Cyber essentials: Yes
• Please provide your Cyber Essentials Certificate Number: E9fd5f85-7cd1-4ff2-aba9-6f9f5f225b1b
• Cyber essentials plus: Yes
• Please provide your Cyber Essentials Plus Certificate Number: 181966c9-f0aa-42ed-9271-d1b111bdf43b
• Other security certifications: Yes
• Any other security certifications: Security Standards dependant on the vendor solution

Social value

• Section B - Commitment for Future: Delivery:

  • Mission: Kick start economic growth. To secure the highest sustained growth in the G7 - with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

    Policy Outcome 1: Fair work: That offers fair wages and good working conditions. Help people get a job, stay in work, and progress in their careers, with good employment opportunities across the country. Notes: Where there is a large proportion of labour costs in the contract, commercial teams should consider MAC in Outcome 1 as a priority

    • New apprenticeships on the contract workforce in the relevant area that meet the criteria set out in MAC 1b
    • Providing opportunities for, and measuring and monitoring of, staff workforce conditions over time, including employee engagement, involvement in decision-making and satisfaction and adapting to any changes in the results, with clear processes for acting on issues identified
    • Plans to engage the contract workforce in deciding the most important workplace issues to address
    • Ensuring new workers are informed of their right to join a trade union
    • Monitoring of employee engagement rates (by protected characteristic) and, where necessary, the development of actions to ensure all voices are heard across the diversity of the workforce
    • Employment contracts that reflect actual hours worked; steps taken to ensure employees understand their contracts and have the ability to review and adjust them if actual hours regularly exceed contracted hours
    • Activities that support an environment where staff are educated about, and feel empowered to, address their physical wellbeing
    • Activities that support an environment where staff are educated about and feel empowered to report and address bullying and harassment
    • Offer a pay and leave entitlement to all eligible staff who become kinship carers, ideally equivalent to statutory adoption pay and leave
    • Payment of more than the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage (as appropriate) to the contract workforce
    • Monitoring and reporting of gender and ethnicity pay gaps and plans to address them where necessary
    • Entitlement to sick pay for the contract workforce, with provision in place for any staff who do not meet the earnings threshold for statutory sick pay, payment of sick pay from day one of absence and payment of staff on the contract workforce who are off sick a replacement income of 100% of their usual earnings for as long as possible
    • Plans for an appropriate income replacement policy for staff who are required to spend time away from work to care for a sick dependent or close relative
    • Understanding of in-work progression issues affecting the market, industry or sector relevant to the contract, and in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key sub-contractors
    • Measures to support in-work progression to help people in the contract workforce, to move into higher paid work by developing new skills relevant to the contract
    • Support for the contract workforce by providing career advice, and providing opportunities for staff working on the contract with in-work progression career development into known skills shortages or high growth areas
    • Support for educational attainment relevant to the contract, including training schemes that address skills gaps and result in recognised qualifications
    • Volunteering opportunities for staff
    • Understanding of the modern slavery risks and issues affecting the market, industry, sector or country (of origin or of source) relevant to the contract, and the workforce in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key subcontractors
    • Outline policies and practices to be applied to or put in place for the contract to mitigate and manage modern slavery risks, including: Pre-employment checks, recruitment practices. Workplace conditions, safeguarding plans and processes in place and regular monitoring with relevant groups considered, which may include sampling
    • Means of influencing staff, suppliers, customers, communities and/or any other appropriate stakeholders with respect to modern slavery risks relating to the contract

  • Mission: Kick start economic growth. To secure the highest sustained growth in the G7 - with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

    Policy Outcome 2: Skills for growth: Supporting growth sectors and addressing skills gaps.

    • Understanding of employment and relevant skills issues, and of the education and training issues relating to the contract. Illustrative examples: demographics, skills shortages, new opportunities in high growth sectors, geographic/local community and skills/employment challenges
    • Support for educational attainment relevant to the contract, including training schemes that address skills gaps and result in recognised qualifications
    • Activities to support relevant sector related skills growth and sustainability in the contract workforce. Illustrative examples: careers talks, curriculum support, literacy support, safety talks and volunteering
    • Delivery of apprenticeships, supported internships and T Level industry placement opportunities (Level 2, 3 and 4+) in relation to the contract

  • Mission: Kick start economic growth. To secure the highest sustained growth in the G7 - with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

    Policy Outcome 3: Resilient, innovative and flexible supply chains: Support economic growth through enabling resilient businesses, opportunities for small businesses and voluntary, community and social enterprises

    • Understanding of the types of businesses in the market and the level of participation by new businesses, entrepreneurs, start-ups, SMEs, VCSEs and mutuals
    • Activities to identify opportunities to open up sub-contracts under the prime contract to a diverse range of businesses, including new businesses, entrepreneurs, start-ups, SMEs, VCSEs and mutuals
    • Plans for engaging a diverse range of businesses in engagement activities prior to appointing subcontractors (including activities prior to award of the main contract and during the contract term)
    • Ensuring accessibility to contracting and subcontracting opportunities for disabled business owners and employees
    • Support for community-led initiatives relevant to the contract. Illustrative examples: improving transport links; reducing loneliness; helping with English language proficiency; and facilitating social mixing among people with different backgrounds

  • Mission: Make Britain a clean energy superpower: To cut bills, create jobs and deliver security with cheaper, zero-carbon electricity by 2030, accelerating to net zero

    Policy Outcome 4: Sustainable procurement practices: Reducing carbon footprints, minimising waste, and promoting the use of clean energy and green technologies.

    • Understanding of opportunities for additional environmental benefits delivery in the performance of the contract, including working towards net zero carbon emissions and use of clean energy and green technologies
    • Collaborative ways of working with the supply chain to deliver additional environmental benefits in the performance of the contract, including working towards net zero carbon emissions and use of clean energy and green technologies
    • Delivery of additional environmental benefits through the performance of the contract, including working towards net zero carbon emissions and use of clean energy and green technologies
    • Understanding of how to influence staff, suppliers, customers, communities and/or any other appropriate stakeholders through the delivery of the contract to support climate and nature protection and improvement
    • Activities to reconnect people with the environment and increase awareness of ways to protect and enhance it

  • Mission: Break down barriers to opportunity: By reforming our childcare and education systems, to make sure there is no class ceiling on the ambitions of young people in Britain

    Policy Outcome 6: Employment and training: For those who face barriers to employment

    • Understanding of employment and skills issues, and of the skills and employment shortages of high growth sectors relating to the contract
    • Creation of employment opportunities particularly for those who face barriers to employment, such as prison leavers, care leavers and/or who are located in deprived areas, and for people in industries with known skills shortages or in high growth sectors
    • Delivery of training schemes and programmes to address any identified skills gaps and under-representation in the workforce for the contract (e.g. prison leavers, care leavers, kinship carers, disabled people)
    • Understanding of the issues affecting the representation of disabled people in the workforce in the market, industry or sector relevant to the contract, and in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key sub-contractors
    • Collection of the views and expertise of disabled people and their representative organisations on successfully supporting disabled employees or applicants
    • Inclusive and accessible recruitment practices, and retention-focused activities, including those provided in the Guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition
    • Introducing transparency to pay and reward processes
    • Offering a range of quality opportunities with routes of progression if appropriate, e.g. T Level industry placements, students supported into higher level apprenticeships.
    • Working conditions which promote an inclusive working environment and promote retention and progression
    • Other measures to provide equality of opportunity for disabled people and those with health conditions into employment, including becoming a Disability Confident employer and inclusion of supported businesses in the contract supply chain
    • Understanding of the issues affecting inequality in employment, skills and pay in the market, industry or sector relevant to the contract, and in the supplier’s own organisation and those of its key sub-contractors. Measures to tackle inequality in employment, skills and pay in the contract workforce
    • Inclusive and accessible development practices, including guidance for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing people with a disability or health condition

  • Mission: Break down barriers to opportunity: By reforming our childcare and education systems, to make sure there is no class ceiling on the ambitions of young people in Britain

    Policy Outcome 7: Creating a pipeline of opportunities: For the contract workforce, reducing barriers to entry for under-represented groups.

    • Understanding of the issues affecting the development of new skills by target cohort
    • Understanding of the underlying factors affecting improvements to reduce barriers to entry and training schemes for the target cohort(s) related to the contract workforce
    • Other measures to offer development opportunities for the target cohort(s) in the contract workforce
    • Understanding of issues relating to entering the contract workforce
    • Creation of outreach activities to create a pipeline of employees for the future contract delivery
    • Content of the outreach activity is designed to suit the target cohort

  • Mission: Build an NHS fit for the future: That is there when people need it; with fewer lives lost to the biggest killers; in a fairer Britain, where everyone lives well for longer.

    Policy Outcome 8: Increasing productivity through physical and mental wellbeing: In the supply chain and communities in the relevant area.

    • Understanding of issues relating to health and wellbeing, including physical and mental health, in the contract workforce
    • Understanding barriers to access to health and social care services or employment opportunities e.g. digital inclusion
    • Inclusive and accessible recruitment practices, development practices and retention policies that support-focused activities including those provided in the Guide for line managers on recruiting, managing and developing which support people with a disability or health condition
    • Actions to invest in the physical and mental health and wellbeing of the contract workforce

Service documents

• Pricing document

  PDF

• Service definition document

  PDF

• Terms and conditions

  PDF

Request an accessible format

If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need versions of these documents in a more accessible format, email the supplier at psitq@softcat.com. Tell them what format you need. It will help if you say what assistive technology you use.