Sask. AIMS system now forecasted to cost $250M, lessons learned report needed, auditor finds

The Saskatchewan Health Authority logo can be seen in this CTV News file photo.

The latest report by Saskatchewan’s provincial auditor says the troubled Administrative Information Management System (AIMS) is now set to cost $250 million by the project’s end.

In Volume Two of Provincial Auditor Tara Clemett’s report for 2024, she outlined the updated cost as well as the storied history of the system commissioned for Saskatchewan’s health care system.

AIMS is designed to replace 80 aging and non-integrated systems to manage payroll, scheduling, human resources and finances for the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA), eHealth, Saskatchewan Cancer Agency in addition to other organizations.

The updated total cost of AIMS at $250 million represents a $10 million increase from the figure cited in Clemett’s report on AIMS late last year – and over three times the project’s original budget.

Reiterating her concerns from previous reports, Clemett continued to highlight that the SHA must coordinate and put together a report, detailing “lessons learned” from the development and implementation of AIMS.

“The purpose of documenting and applying lessons learned is to identify improvements for future projects (e.g., effective governance structure, incremental approach to project delivery),” Clemett’s report read.

“Sharing such information with other government agencies leading significant IT projects can help avoid system implementation failures on similar projects—removing potential impediments before they happen.”

The origin of the AIMS program can be traced back to 2018. At its outset, the province aimed to have the system operational by March 31, 2021, at a cost of $86 million.

However, the program encountered delays, which pushed the implementation date back.

In November of 2022, the SHA attempted to go live with AIMS. However, system defects such as failed staff scheduling, and payroll time entry caused the health authority to revert back to its original systems after a period of four days.

Another capital and operating agreement with the Ministry of Health was signed by the SHA in December of 2023, according to the auditor.

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The agreement provided the SHA with an additional $91 million to complete AIMS by March 31, 2026.

By March of 2024, the provincial government had reportedly spent $190 million of the budget so far.

Following the failed launch in 2022, the government began planning for a phased implementation of AIMS.

That process began in June of 2024. Despite the years spent on the system, functionality issues were reportedly still present during the relaunch.

Healthcare professionals, including doctors, reported payroll issues over the course of the summer.

Mike Northcott, chief human resources officer at the SHA, told CTV News in July that the number of employees who experienced payments issues in the program’s first run represented less than one per cent of those served.

“The second pay run required even fewer advances, dropping the error rate to well below one per cent. Instances where employees do not receive their pay are being addressed quickly, and all staff are being paid. As issues are identified, advances are processed,” Northcott said in a statement.

According to the province, the AIMS system processes approximately 48,000 pay slips in each pay period.