N3 Customer Handbook. N3 programme

Transcription

1 N3 Customer Handbook

2 Contents 1 Introduction Customer Overview Foundation Services Catalogue Services 4 2 Contact Details N3SP Contacts CRM Overview Customer Site and Organisation Contact 5 3 Incident Reporting Incident Handling Overview of Incident Handling Incident Severity Classification Major Incidents/Significant Incidents Incident Escalation and Complaints Provision Escalation NHS Connecting For Health Contacts Maintenance 11 4 Configuration Changes 12 5 Security Guidance 13 6 The Network Integrator 14 7 Roles and Responsibilities 15 Glossary of Terms 16/17 3

3 1 Introduction This Customer Handbook provides NHS N3 users and customers with a guide to the services provided and managed by the N3 Service Provider (N3SP). This handbook defines the agreed procedures to be followed for the ongoing management and maintenance to support the N3 service. It is structured to provide a general description of the N3 service, incident reporting processes, change control processes and information on roles and responsibilities. 1.1 Customer Overview BT was awarded the N3 contract on February 19th 2004 and acts as a network integrator. The service replaces NHSnet. The integrator role is to ensure Network Providers are continually reviewing services to best meet customer and NHS Connecting for Health needs and have the ability to provide best value. There are two service areas in the contract; Foundation Services and Catalogue Services. 1.2 Foundation Services Foundation Services are those services necessary to manage the contract and include: Contract and Programme Management; Service Management; Technical Services; Network Management functions such as a 24 hour customer Help Desk; IP Addressing; DNS; DHCP; Access and Capacity Planning. These are the base services required to deliver network services to N3 customers. 1.3 Catalogue Services Catalogue Services are the product set that N3SP deliver to the customer base. Component parts of each service are procured from the third parties that deliver best value for that component. The components are then integrated into a network catalogue service. Each catalogue service is mapped to an NHS site based on the number of devices used at that site, the LSP application running at those sites and the bandwidth service required to support these. A full description of each catalogue service can be obtained via the N3 Customer Relationship Management Portal (CRM) catalogue area (see for details) 4

4 2 Contact Details This section details the primary contacts within N3SP who are responsible for the provision, maintenance and ongoing service of your N3 connection and service. 2.1 N3SP Contacts Use the following numbers to report NHS N3 WAN issues. N3 Incident Reporting (24hrs) Option 1 This option should be used for incidents and in-life service issues. N3 Provision Enquiries (8:30-17:00) Option 2 This option should be used for specific delivery related calls. N3 Public website Information Governance website igsecurity/ NHS Connecting for Health website N3 General Enquiries (8:30-17:00) Option 3 This option covers any other N3 enquiries. 2.2 CRM Overview A key part of the N3 service is the CRM portal. This enables customers to manage their N3 estate on a self-service basis. The site is organised in a hierarchal way to ensure visitors get quick access to the information that is relevant and appropriate to them. For NHS customers, the CRM lets you record information about individual sites, request N3 services for those sites, request changes to services already provided, obtain reports regarding sites and service and provide billing information. You can also find detailed technical network management information through the High Speed Customer Reporting (HSCR) tool. Accessed through the reports section of the CRM, the HSCR provides detailed use and status information about the N3 services provided at every site. Detailed user guides for the CRM system are available online via Customer Site and Organisation Contact N3 may need to make contact with customers when there is planned work for their site, when faults occur impacting service, where access to the customer site is required, or where assistance is required in testing and diagnosis. Customers nominate contacts for sites which will be used by N3SP when needed. Please ensure that the names, phone numbers and addresses for these contacts are kept up-to-date. One contact can look after the whole organisation or there can be different contacts for each site. You should also be aware that the contact from N3SP may concern immediate service issues, therefore mailboxes used for contact should be monitored over leave periods. 5

5 3 Incident Reporting This section outlines the process for incident reporting or raising technical queries about any part of your N3 service. N3SP provides a Help Desk offering a single point of contact, available around the clock, every day of the year. You can contact the Help Desk for all queries relating to the N3 service, including incident reporting, firewall change requests, ordering services, incident escalations, technical advice, general advice and billing queries. To ensure that N3SP is able to provide the most appropriate support to the right site and inform the right people. It is important that customers use the reporting and escalation processes outlined within this document. If customers are unsure as to the process to be used the N3SP Help Desk can provide advice and guidance. Customer/ Users require seamless service. National Service Desk Local Service Provider Spine NHS Local Helpdesk Other LSP Desks Existing Desks. Many sources. Some are core hoursonly N3 Service Desk ATOS NASP s NHS Local Helpdesk 6

6 3.1 Incident Handling Users should log support calls with their usual local IT Support Service in the first instance. Local IT Support Services may then raise calls through the National Service Desk (or their LSP if that is the local arrangement) or direct to the N3SP Help Desk as appropriate. Where calls are made to the LSP, the LSP will manage the incident and raise issues with N3 as required. To enable the incident to be logged accurately, persons reporting incidents should identify themselves as NHS N3 Customers, and wherever possible, provide the information below; Site location/identifier (SIN) Contact number Circuit details Equipment located at the site Incident details Access times If this information is not available, N3SP will endeavour to identify the service and site from other information, but this will mean that logging the incident may take longer. The N3SP Help Desk will provide an incident reference number at the time of the incident report. You should use the incident reference number allocated by N3SP in any subsequent discussion or correspondence regarding the incident. The contracted repair time and other service levels will vary according to the catalogue service installed. Specific information on each of the catalogue services is available in the N3 catalogue which is accessed via the CRM once logged in. 3.2 Overview of Incident Handling IM&T Groups Local Service Providers Other Helpdesks Customer Domain NHS Service Provider Domain N3 Service Desk Billing Single Point of Contact 3rd Parties Billing Process Fault Management Impact Analysis Faults Enquiry Process General Enquiries Change Management Escalations Ad-hoc Reports Escalating Process Reporting Process Supply Process 7

7 3.3 Incident Severity Classification Severity 1 Service Failure A service failure which, in the reasonable opinion of the allocating customer or NHS Connecting for Health: Is having, or is likely to cause imminently, a critical adverse impact on the provision of the service to customers. Has caused or is likely to cause significant financial loss to NHS Connecting for Health or a customer. Is adversely affecting or is likely to adversely affect NHS Connecting for Health or a customer s public image, or result in media comment which will impact adversely upon NHS Connecting for Health or a customer. Threatens the confidence in the N3 service of a significant number of customers. Severity 2 Service Failure A service failure which, in the reasonable opinion of the allocating customer, NHS Connecting for Health or N3SP (as applicable): Is having, or is likely to cause imminently, a major (but not critical) impact on the provision of the service to customers. Has caused, or is likely to cause, a financial loss to NHS Connecting for Health or a customer which is more than trivial but less severe than the significant financial loss described in the definition of a Severity 1 Service Failure. Threatens the confidence in the Service of a number of customers which is more than trivial but less than the significant number of customers described in the definition of a Severity 1 Service Failure. Severity 3 Service Failure A service failure which, in the reasonable opinion of the allocating customer or NHS Connecting for Health: Is having, or is likely to have imminently, a moderate impact on the provision of the N3 service to customers. Threatens any customer s confidence in the N3 service. Severity 4 Service Failure A service failure which, in the reasonable opinion of the allocating customer or NHS Connecting for Health is having, or is likely to have, a minor or moderate impact on the provision of the N3 service to customers. Severity 5 Service Failure A service failure comprising cosmetic flaws affecting only the presentation of the Service that does not undermine a customer s confidence in the N3 service. 8

8 3.4 Major Incidents/Significant Incidents Major Incidents are defined as one of the following: Any outage affecting five or more sites Any outage affecting a Data Centre Any outage affecting a key customer Any outage affecting key connections/services e.g. COIN links, Service Centres, English Gateway, DNS etc CRM outage Core POP failures Customers with single points of failure (due to partial resilient installs) When a major incident is declared the N3SP Help Desk will follow the agreed Major Incident Management Process. 3.5 Incident Escalation and Complaints N3SP operates an internal jeopardy management process for all incidents, which will initiate escalations at critical points in their incident management process without further customer intervention. However, the customer can separately raise further escalations through the N3 Help Desk ( opt 1) if they believe the situation has not improved. The table below provides a guide to each escalation level to approach in turn, giving each party a suitable opportunity to assess the impact of the incident, before, should it prove necessary, proceeding to the next level. Level Role Time escalated 1 st point of contact N3SP Help Desk 1 st level escalation point Senior Team Manager 30 mins for MI, 1 hour for priority 1 2 nd level escalation point Senior Operations Manager 3 rd level escalation point Head of Service Support 4 th level escalation point Service & Operations Director Escalations will follow this path within the time span appropriate for the Incident. 9

9 If the customer feels the escalation process has not worked effectively, they should the NHS Connecting for Health N3 mailbox marked for the attention of the Lead N3 Service Manager. If you are unhappy with any aspect of the N3 service you can raise a complaint. Details of the process and associated forms for this are held on the N3 CRM website within the key document section of the site. 3.6 Provision Escalation Customers should initially direct any provision enquiry or update request to the N3SP Help Desk ( option 2). However, if a customer has planned installation work which is not taking place as expected, a complaint can be raised. Details of the process and associated forms for this are held on the N3 CRM website within the key document section of the site. If the customer feels the provision escalation process has not worked effectively, they should escalate to the local NHS Connecting for Health contact (section 3.7). 3.7 NHS Connecting For Health Contacts If you need to contact any of the N3 Cluster Implementation Managers, please n3pmd@nhs.net for an up-to-date list of contacts. 10

10 3.8 Maintenance Scheduled Maintenance: Unscheduled Maintenance: There are occasions where it is necessary to There may also be occasions when it is not undertake planned maintenance work on the logistically possible for the N3SP Help Desk network, such as upgrades or preventative to inform NHS N3 customers directly of maintenance. In such circumstances the N3SP work being carried out on the network. Help Desk will inform NHS N3 customers of Where possible a message will be posted planned maintenance work via and the on the CRM system. CRM. This will be scheduled to minimise customer impact. N3 catalogue services are designed to provide resilience so scheduled maintenance will often have no customer service impact. 11

11 4 Configuration Changes For configuration changes to the customer s catalogue services (such as firewall access control list changes) a standard or nonstandard change form is completed by the end customer. The forms for both standard and nonstandard changes are available through the CRM ordering system, accessible by pressing the Configuration Request button within the sites tab. If all the required information is not received or has not been submitted on the appropriate form, the Operations Change Manager or delegate will return the change to the initiator. If all of the required information is received the request is logged and the ticket number is ed to the requestor, asking them to quote this reference number whenever they make further contact regarding this change. More detailed information regarding the use of standard and non-standard change request forms can be obtained from the following website: igsecurity/igforms/ Once the change is complete the customer is notified via . 12

12 5 Security Guidance N3SP adheres to a detailed security policy that governs the operation of N3 threats, incidents and management. Network security is operated in accordance with good industry practice and is compliant with ISO/IEC1799:2000 and BS7799-2:2002. The NHS and its suppliers have the responsibility to ensure that they fully comply with the terms of the Statement of Compliance. NHS Connecting for Health s Statement of Compliance (SoC) details the obligations that all organisations need to agree to before receiving access to the N3 network and/or NHS Connecting for Health Digital Services. The Statement of Compliance replaces the Code of Connection and went live on the 1 December The Statement of Compliance: Provides a broader agreement for the security requirements which organisations must have in place before they can access the network, between NHS Connecting for Health and the connecting organisation. Completes the migration from NHSnet to the N3 network Introduces a self-regulating form of governance to cover the evolution of both technologies and NHS Connecting for Health itself which takes a less intrusive approach to ensuring security Please visit nhs.uk/systemsandservices/infogov/soc in order to complete this process. 13

13 6 The Network Integrator Most networks are delivered by a single provider as a complete package, controlling physical infrastructure, backbone, associated network services, local loop contracts and staff to support the service. Although this approach limits technical risk it does not deliver value for money in the medium to long term if purchasing extensive network capability on a national basis. Following research and evaluation, NHS Connecting for Health decided to enter into an agreement with a single integrator or prime contractor. The N3SP is not expected to provide all, or any, of the required network services internally, but instead acts as an intermediary between the requirements of network users (the NHS) and the range of telecoms services available from sub-contractors (suppliers). The N3SP has responsibility for service delivery, demonstrating transparency in the procurement and delivery of services and demonstrating objective value for money on a regular basis. BT has been awarded the N3 contract with a requirement to demonstrate independence and operate a multi-supplier environment acting as an integrator of network services. To that end BT has provided an autonomous integrator division within BT to deliver the requirements of the contract. N3 will provide connectivity to all NHS sites (for example, hospitals and GP branch practices) and not just to all organisations (for example, trusts) delivering NHS care. This means that for the first time ever all NHS sites will have fully resilient connections to a national NHS network. N3 can also offer direct and indirect connections to organisations such as dentists, opticians, pharmacists and prisons, as well as non-nhs organisations that need to do business with the NHS. To deliver these managed network services the N3SP will provide and manage on-site gateway equipment such as firewalls and routers for the majority of NHS sites. The provision of local area networking infrastructure and services do not form part of the core services within this contract. 14

14 7 Roles and Responsibilities This section aims to help you identify the most appropriate person to deal with your queries and issues, by outlining the roles and responsibilities of your key contacts within N3SP. N3 Desk Based Account Manager Your N3 Desk Based Account manager acts as your primary point of contact and overall interface into N3, covering all N3SP products and services. You can expect them to provide you with guidance and assistance on the differing products and services on offer through N3SP as well as how to order them, the delivery process and timescales. They can facilitate further contact points within N3SP for enquiries of a more complex or bespoke nature and ensure that you enquiry is managed through to completion. They can also facilitate a clear picture of the escalation paths available within N3SP, should they become necessary. N3 Account Managers - Field Based As customer focussed individuals, the team work closely with customers at all levels, more specifically on the complex and bespoke uses of the N3 Network including Community of Interest Networks, Triangulation, N3 Voice Services as well as more effective uses of the network for national and local applications traffic. They utilise a full range of contacts within N3SP to deliver a matrix team of experts to deliver N3SP products and services to meet each customer s requirements and budget. They work to develop a robust development plan for each customer to ensure that their N3 journey is one of evolution and optimisation of the network that is available to them. This they do whilst working closely with regional NHS contacts to manage and plan demand for N3SP products and services, they co-ordinate local strategies for N3 deployment and customer satisfaction, as well as look to developing ideas for new products and services to be made available through N3SP. Please contact the N3SP Help Desk on Option 3 15

15 Glossary of Terms Advisory boards Established to ensure the National Programme for IT engages with stakeholders, such as patients, the public, and social and healthcare professionals. Department of Health DH/DoH/DOH Aims to improve the health and wellbeing of people in England by providing health and social care policy, guidance and publications. egovernment Interoperability Framework egif Interoperable systems working in a seamless and coherent way across the public sector (e.g. between the NHS and Local Government Social Services). ETP Electronic Transmission of Prescriptions Enables GPs/prescribers to send prescriptions electronically to pharmacies. General Medical Services GMS The rules used to manage payments to family doctors as part of the GPs contract. IM&T Information Management & Technology Name given to local NHS Trust IT departments. Local Service Providers LSPs Responsible for making sure the new systems and services delivered through the NPfIT meet local requirements and are implemented efficiently. New National Network N3 The new fast, broadband communications network for the NHS. N3 is delivered by BT and replaces the existing private NHS network, NHSnet. National Application Service Providers NASPs Groups of commercial suppliers who are contracted to deliver national services such as Choose and Book and the Electronic Transmission of Prescriptions. NHS Care Records Service NHS CRS An electronic store of over 50 million healthcare records which can be accessed by health professionals where and when they are needed. It will also give patients electronic access to their own health record. NHSnet A secure wide area network connecting NHS organisations managed for the NHS by BT and Cable and Wireless. Contract ends in 2007 and N3 services will replace NHSnet. NHSnet is also known as the NHS Intranet and it is the largest Virtual Private Network in Europe. National Programme for IT NPfIT Responsible for procurement and delivery of the multi-billion pound investment in new information and technology systems to improve the NHS. NHS-wide Clearing Service NWCS PACS PCT NWCS provides an electronic post box for the NHS; receiving, sorting and passing information in an internationally accepted format, (UN/EDIFACT) between purchasers and providers. A national clearing service has been created, replacing regional systems and setting a standard for the transfer of contract data within the NHS. Picture Archiving and Communication Systems A system enabling images such as X-rays and scans to be stored and sent electronically so that doctors and other health professionals can access the information with the touch of a button. Primary Care Trust Responsible for local management of primary healthcare service in a geographic area. 16

16 Prescription Pricing Authority PPA A national provider of managed services to the NHS. Its main functions are to calculate and make payments for amounts due to pharmacists and GPs for supplying drugs and appliances prescribed under the NHS. It also produces information for NHS organisations and stakeholders about prescribing volumes, trends and costs and manages a range of health benefits e.g. the NHS Low Income Scheme. Quality and outcomes framework Sets out a voluntary system of financial incentives for improving quality within the General Medical Services contract for GP payments. Regional governance Regional management frameworks and controls to ensure new systems are introduced and used efficiently at the local levels Regional Implementation Directors RIDs Responsible for managing implementation of the new national services across a geographic area. Strategic Health Authorities SHAs The headquarters of the local NHS. Their role is to make sure that the health of local people is maintained and improved and that they have access to health services when they need them. SHA CEs Strategic Health Authority Chief Executives The Chief Executives of the Strategic Health Authorities. Strategic Health Authority Chief Information Officers SHA CIOs Responsible for the implementation of the new systems and the delivery of benefits at an organisational level across their SHA area. Special Health Authority SpHA Special health authorities have been set-up to provide a national service to the NHS or the public. They include: Prescriptions Pricing Authority, UK Transplant, National Blood Authority, National Patient Safety Agency, NHS litigation Authority, NHS Logistics Authority, National Institute for Clinical Excellence and NHS Information Authority. Tracking Database The Tracking Database holds IT Infrastructure information for NHS organisations and performs three core functions: TDB INVENTORY A rich source of on-line information about systems and networks in use in GP Practices throughout England, being expanded to include Trusts, Health Authorities and others. WORKFLOW Easy to use e-solutions for common processes such as on-line ordering for NHSnet Connections, Messaging Solutions, Encryption tools for security and automated processes for remote firewall testing. PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT This helps to collate and build a national picture of performance against targets for strategic programmes. It allows projects to be planned and tracked in such a way that users can see where they are, what they are doing and how they compare to others. Voice over Internet Protocol VoIP WAN VoIP (i.e. voice delivered using the Internet Protocol) is a term for using the Internet Protocol (IP) to carry telephonic communication. In general, this means sending voice information in digital form rather than in the well-known circuit-committed protocols of the public switched telephone network (PSTN). A major advantage of VoIP and Internet telephony is that it avoids the tolls charged by ordinary telephone service. Wide Area Network A WAN is a geographically dispersed network. The term distinguishes a broader telecommunication structure from a local area network (LAN). A wide area network may be privately owned or rented as in the case of the NHSnet, but the term usually infers the inclusion of public (shared user) networks. 17

17 For more information please call the N3 Helpdesk on or see the website August 2007 Document Owner: N3SP Customer Experience Team PHME British Telecommunications plc Registered Office: 81 Newgate Street, London EC1A 7AJ Version 2