The health secretary, John Reid, has announced another £2bn-worth of IT contracts to give NHS patients electronic records of the care and treatment they receive.
The announcement of the successful bids to run the records system in the north-west and west Midlands and eastern regions follows the award earlier this month of contracts to set up a national system and local services in the London and north-east regions.
The electronic records system is a key component in the government's NHS modernisation programme and will give 50 million NHS patients an individual electronic NHS care record, replacing the current patchwork of paper and computer records.
The £973m, 10-year contract to connect the north-west and west Midlands regions to the system has been awarded to IT outsourcing company Computer Sciences Corporation, while management consultancy and IT firm Accenture has won the £934 eastern region contract.
Mr Reid said: "The NHS care record will completely revolutionise the way that information is managed by the NHS, making sure that all doctors, nurses and allied health professionals can access vital patient information 24 hours a day, seven days a week; helping them to deliver the best care to patients in the most efficient way.
"The NHS IT programme will mean that patients will get access to more comprehensive information to help them make choices and will eventually be able to access their own health records."
Richard Granger, director general of NHS IT, said he was pleased that contracts had been awarded "in line with the schedule we committed to in January this year".
But he said the Department of Health now aimed to award the remaining contract for the Southern region - originally expected before the end of the year - in January, "when we believe we will have secured the optimum value for patients, the NHS and tax payers for the systems and services we have specified".
Mr Granger added: "Our focus now moves to the challenge of ensuring the timely delivery of high quality services, which we will approach in a similar vein, with attention to clear plans, clear milestones and effective partnership working."
Guy Haines, president of CSC's UK government business, said: "This is a highly complex but exciting challenge, for which we are delighted to be selected."
Accenture's UK managing director, Ian Watmore, said: "This win will deepen our relationship with NHS and expand our commitment to helping them provide the best possible service to people in local communities."
