---
title: "Drug Knowledge Base for Electronic Health and Care Record"
ocid: "ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3"
canonical_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3"
markdown_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3.md"
json_url: "https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3.json"
source: "Find A Tender Service"
current_stage: "Award"
buyer: "SOMERSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUST"
published: "2026-07-09"
---

# Drug Knowledge Base for Electronic Health and Care Record

Buyer: SOMERSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUST  
Current stage: Award  
OCID: ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3

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## Summary

The Somerset NHS Foundation Trust has completed a direct award process for the provision of the FDB Multilex drug knowledge base, related to the Healthset Programme's Electronic Health and Care Record. The service contract, valued at approximately £3,477,936 gross, is awarded to First Databank UK Ltd and covers several UK regions including Taunton, Poole, Dorchester, and Exeter. This contract will commence on 22nd July 2026 and conclude on 31st March 2036. The procurement aligns with central government public authority classifications and is grounded in legal provisions under UKPGA 2023/54, executing the procurement directly due to the unique suitability and absence of competitive alternatives meeting specific technical requirements.

This tender offers substantial opportunities for businesses in the healthcare technology and software sectors, particularly those specialised in systems support and information systems integration. Companies involved in drug knowledge databases and electronic health record solutions are especially well-suited to engage with projects of this nature. While this particular procurement was awarded directly for technical reasons, similar future opportunities might arise for innovative businesses offering complementary technologies or services that could integrate with existing systems like Epic. The collaboration with NHS Trusts underscores the growing demand for sophisticated drug information systems and opens avenues for businesses involved in delivering comprehensive software solutions for healthcare optimisation.

## Notice

Somerset NHS Foundation Trust awarded a contract to First Data Bank (FDB)UK for the provision of FDB Multilex. Multilex is FDB UK's proprietary software which provides medicines optimisation and clinical decision support for medicines management for the purposes of embedding within the Healthset Programme for Epic electronic health and care record. FDB Multilex drug knowledge base is used in all UK Epic installations and is the only drug knowledge base product available with the core functionality required by encompass. The Authority is relying on egulation 32(2)(b)(ii) as the contract can only be supplied by FBD UK as competition is absent for technical reasons.

### Procurement Information

Award of a contract without prior publication of a call for competition in the cases listed below The procurement falls outside the scope ofapplication of the regulations Explanation: First Data Bank (FDB) UK is the provider of Multilex. The FDB Multilex drug knowledge base embeds with existing Epic workflows to enable barcoded medicines administration, clinical decision support and inventory management. FDB Multilex drug knowledge base is used in all UK Epic installations and is the only drug knowledge base product available with the core functionality required by Healthset Programme. The Authority is relying on Regulation 32(2)(b)(ii) as the contract can only be supplied by FBD UK as competition is absent for technical reasons.

## Key Details

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication source | Find A Tender Service |
| Latest notice | https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064487-2026 |
| Notice type | UK6 - Contract Award Notice |
| Procurement type | Standard |
| Procurement category | Services |
| Procurement method | Direct |
| Procurement method details | Direct award |
| Tender suitability | SME |
| Awardee scale | Large |
| All stages | Award |

## Dates

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Publication date | 9 Jul 2026 |
| Submission deadline | Not specified |
| Future notice date | Not specified |
| Award date | 7 Jul 2026 |
| Contract period | 21 Jul 2026 - 31 Mar 2036 |
| Recurrence | Not specified |

## Values

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender value | Not specified |
| Lots value | Not specified |
| Awards value | £2,898,280 |
| Contracts value | Not specified |

## Status

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Tender status | Complete |
| Lots status | Complete |
| Awards status | Pending |
| Contracts status | Not specified |

## Buyer

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Main buyer | SOMERSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUST |
| Additional buyers | DORSET COUNTY HOSPITAL NHS FOUNDATION TRUST; DORSET HEALTHCARE UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUST; UNIVERSITY HOSPITALS DORSET NHS FOUNDATION TRUST |
| Locality | TAUNTON |
| Post town | Taunton |
| Postcode | TA1 5DA |
| Country | England |
| ITL 1 | TLK South West (England) |
| ITL 2 | TLK6 North Somerset, Somerset and Dorset |
| ITL 3 | TLK63 Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole |
| Local authority | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole |
| Electoral ward | Canford Heath |
| Westminster constituency | Mid Dorset and North Poole |
| Delivery location | Not specified |

## Supplier

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Number of suppliers | 1 |
| Supplier names | FIRST DATABANK |

## CPV Codes

### Divisions

- 48 - Software package and information systems
- 72 - IT services: consulting, software development, Internet and support

### Codes

- 48000000 - Software package and information systems
- 72250000 - System and support services

## Release History

- 9 Jul 2026 at 08:41 - Award - UK6 - Contract Award Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064487-2026
- 9 Jul 2026 at 08:14 - Award - UK5 - Transparency Notice - https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064467-2026

## Documents

- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064487-2026
  9th July 2026 - Contract award notice on Find a Tender
- https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/064467-2026
  9th July 2026 - Transparency notice on Find a Tender

## Notice URLs

- http://www.fdbhealth.com/
- https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2023/54/contents

## Provenance

This Markdown file is an alternate public rendering of the D3 Tenders contract record. The canonical page is https://d3tenders.com/contract/?ocid=ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3. The underlying structured data is available as OCDS JSON at https://d3tenders.com/contract/ocds-h6vhtk-06c6f3.json.