COMMISSIONING

Currency options for the Healthy Child Programme: Transforming Community Services (11th March 2010)
Community services have historically been funded on block contracting arrangements, making it difficult for commissioners to identify what services are being delivered and pay for them appropriately. The publication, Currency and pricing options for community services (DH, January 2009) signalled the need to develop more effective ways of paying for services which reward quality and productivity, and encourage activity which reflects local priorities.

This latest publication is a tool for commissioners of community services that contribute to the first five years of the universal Healthy Child Programme (HCP). Commissioners can use this to develop a more transparent approach to paying for these services. The development of better ways of paying for services will reward quality and productivity, and encourage activity which promotes the aims and outcomes of the HCP.
Document

World Class Commissioning - March 2010 update (18th March 2010)
Monthly progress report on the World Class Commissioning Programme
Update

Successful Commissioning: How to secure value for money through better financial relationships with third sector organisations (17th March 2010)
The National Audit Office has launched this online guide which focuses on those aspects of the commissioning process that are most likely to affect financial relationships with third sector organisations. It looks at how commissioners can help the third sector to deliver services and outcomes that represent value for money. The main characteristics of the guide are that it:

• clearly sets out the main issues for effective financial relationships with third sector organisations;
• makes use of existing guidance in an accessible and practical way, and;
• dispels some of the ‘myths’ that exist around commissioning with the third sector.

Guide

PRESENTATIONS - Commissioning for health services. Your questions answered. (18th March 2010)
The presentations from this event, that was held on 17th March 2010 at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes, are now available.
Presentations

Valuing people now: transfer of funding and commissioning of social care for adults with learning disabilities from the NHS to local government: final returns 2010/11 by 31 March 2010 (18th March 2010)
From April 2009, funding and commissioning of social care for adults with learning disabilities transferred from the NHS to local authorities. This letter to PCT and Local Authority lead commissioners gives guidance on implementation and requests final returns for 2010/11 by Wednesday 31 March 2010.
Documents

COMMISSIONING

PCT Spend and Outcome Factsheets and Tool (SPOT) (December 2009)
The Department of Health commissioned the Association of Public Health Observatories (APHO) to develop a tool which helps commissioners to link health outcomes and expenditure. Yorkshire and Humber Public Health Observatory led the development of the tool and a factsheet for every Primary Care Trust (PCT) in England. The tool, factsheet and user guide are now available.
Tool

World Class Commissioning - December 2009 update (17th December 2009)
Monthly progress report on the world class commissioning programme.
Update

Cancer commissioning guidance - updates (16th December 2009)
The cancer commissioning guidance announced as part of the Cancer Reform Strategy has been developed to support world-class commissioning of cancer services across the NHS. This guidance sets out, in an easy-to-use format, key issues and questions that commissioners and cancer network teams will want to take into consideration when assessing health needs, reviewing services, developing their contract service specifications and monitoring performance.
Guidance

Cheshire and Merseyside Partners in Public Health Contribution to World Class Commissioning (23rd December 2009)
This paper builds on the work of individual PCTs across Cheshire and Merseyside and their collective programmes through the Cheshire and Merseyside Public Health Network. The purpose of the paper is to:

• Illustrate through network outcomes, evidence, approaches and innovative practices how the network clearly supports C&M PCTs world class commissioning assessments
• Reflects public health challenges and progress that exist in Cheshire and Merseyside and the contribution ChaMPs provides through well-established national, regional and local collaborations
• Provides acknowledgement of the good, and signposts the steps required to move to great

Paper

Service for the treatment and management of schizophrenia in adults (December 2009)
This commissioning guide provides support for the local implementation of NICE clinical guidelines through commissioning, and is a resource to help health and social care professionals in England to commission an effective service for the treatment and management of schizophrenia in adults (18 years and over) with an established diagnosis of schizophrenia with onset before age 60.
Guide

Service for the diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis in adults (December 2009)
This commissioning guide provides support for the local implementation of NICE clinical guidelines through commissioning, and is a resource to help health professionals in England to commission an effective service for the diagnosis and management of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in adults.

The Topic-specific Advisory Group identified that at presentation the diagnosis of RA may not be readily apparent, yet early intervention is important. Therefore patients referred to this service are likely to include people with early inflammatory arthritis. The principles of commissioning a service for people with RA may also be applied to the commissioning of services for people with early inflammatory arthritis.
Guide

SEXUAL HEALTH

Top Tips for Sexual Health Promotion (30th November 2009)
The full report of the summary that was published in October, is now available.

This is the fourth in a series of "Top Tips" documents aimed at promoting public health. The top tips provide a common sense approach to sexual health issues with practical suggestions that will make a positive difference both at home and in the workplace.
Full Report

PUBLIC HEALTH

EVENT: Working with partners to fight Gastrointestinal infection in Children and Merseyside (11th November 2009)
The presentations from the above event that was held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes are now available for download.
Programme
Presentations

Population forecasting models updated (18th November 2009)
Projecting Older People Population Information System (POPPI) and Projecting Adult Needs and Service Information (PANSI) have been updated and new pages for household growth, hearing impairment and diabetes have been added.
Information

DIET/NUTRITION

Healthier Food Mark: Promoting healthier, more sustainable food - draft criteria to be tested during Phase 1 of the pre-consultation pilot (14th October 2009)
This scheme concerns the establishment of a voluntary Healthier Food Mark in the public sector so that public sector food reaches a standard to make a positive contribution to a nutritionally balanced diet and improves the sustainability of public sector food procurement

The first draft of the criteria was presented to stakeholders at the event on 30 April 2009. Further to feedback from that event and more detailed discussions with the food industry, public sector organisations and other stakeholders, a revised proposed and potential list of criteria has been developed for testing during Phase 1 of the pre-consultation pilot.
Document

Snack Right. Using social marketing to achieve healthier food choices in the under fives (27th October 2009)
In response to social marketing references in the White Paper Choosing Health: Making healthy choices easier, Cheshire and Merseyside's directors of public health established a social marketing group with the objectives of:

• Testing social marketing by delivering a project around food that addressed growing concerns about obesity;
• Developing capacity and capability in social marketing in Cheshire and Merseyside

This report looks at the project of Snack Right that arose from this.
Final Report

PUBLIC HEALTH

EVENT - What works for worklessness? Sharing good practice from across the public health community (13th October 2009)
The presentations from this event that was held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes are now available to download.
Programme
Combined Presentations

SEXUAL HEALTH

Top Tips for Sexual Health Promotion (26th October 2009)
This guide is the fourth in a series of "Top Tips" documents aimed at promoting public health. The top tips provide a common sense approach to sexual health issues with practical suggestions that will make a positive difference both at home and in the workplace.
Summary

HEALTH INEQUALITIES

EVENT - Health inequalities forum: Lessons from DH National Support Team (NST) (17th September 2009)
The presentations from this event held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes are now available.
Presentations

PUBLIC HEALTH

Intelligent Commissioning (July 2009)
This report gives examples of the work of the Association of Public Health, Public Health and Themed Observatories to support commissioning and looks at the way forward.
Report

Practical predictive modelling (15th July 2009)
These are the presentations from the above event that was held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes.
Presentations

Creating a performance management framework for a minimal alcohol dataset for PCTs in Cheshire and Merseyside (27th July 2009)
The Cheshire and Merseyside Partnerships for Health (ChaMPs) commissioned the Centre for Public Health (CPH) Research Directorate to identify possible data providers from a range of agencies who are able to provide intelligence regarding the impact of alcohol in Cheshire and Merseyside. The aim of the project was to develop a performance management framework which can provide a minimal dataset to be collected on a range of alcohol-related issues across Cheshire and Merseyside.
Report

UK/WHO growth charts seminar (22nd July 2009)
The presentations are now available from this seminar that was held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes.
Programme
Practical examples
Best Start for Life Guidelines
An Introduction to the new UK/WHO Growth Charts

PUBLIC HEALTH

Practical predictive modelling (15th July 2009)
These are the presentations from the Cheshire and Merseyside Public Health Network (ChaMPs) event that was held on 15th July 2009 at Stobart Stadium, Widnes.
Presentations

PUBLIC HEALTH

EVENT - Healthy lives for under fives (12th May 2009)
This event, from Cheshire and Merseyside Public Health Network, took place at Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool on 12th May. These are the presentations from the event.
Presentations

ALCOHOL

Drinking in the UK: An exploration of trends (6th May 2009)
A key part of the Government’s alcohol harm reduction strategy is to monitor changes in drinking habits over time and to identify what factors are potentially contributing to the rising levels of consumption. This study is a systematic review of research relevant to trends in alcohol consumption over the last 20 to 30 years in the UK.
Study

The Price is Right - protecting communities through action on alcohol sales (5th May 2009)
This report investigates the relationship between the price of alcohol, consumption levels and alcohol-related harms. Alcohol Concern concludes that a mandatory code of practice should be introduced to regulate the retail drinks industry.
Report

Understanding young people's alcohol-related social norms in Sefton - Interim Report (5th May 2009)

In order to understand local social norms amongst teenagers and to effectively target a social norms campaign, Sefton PCT commissioned the Centre for Public Health to investigate prevailing attitudes and norms in local schools. This was done via an online survey and this report presents the results of the survey. The results suggest:

• Most pupils (91.3%) have drunk alcohol
• 11.68 years being the mean age of onset of consumption of alcohol
• Parties, home with their families and in parks and other public open spaces are the common places where they drink
• 17.6% said that their parents were unaware of where they are on Friday or Saturday nights.
• 51.7% thought it was acceptable for people their age to get drunk once in a while, 78% thought it was acceptable for them to get drunk themselves.
• 48% had had an argument as a result of alcohol consumption, 47.8% a hangover with 38.7% having vomited.
• 1 in 12 young people surveyed took no safety precautions when out drinking.
• Those that did take precautions included 65.8% carrying a mobile phone, 55.7% walked home with friends, 47% letting their parents know where they were.

Report

ChaMPs Alcohol Insight - Qualitative Research De-Brief (April 2009)

PUBLIC HEALTH

EVENT - Behaviour change: from commissioning to practice (10th March 2009)
These are the presentations from the above event that was held by ChaMPs at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington.
Presentations