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

COMMUNITY SERVICES

Co-operative PCTs - the future of the NHS? (11th March 2010)
Three years ago a former nurse and a speech therapist, who held senior positions in their Primary Care Trust (PCT), lifted the nursing and therapy teams out of the PCT and set up a new, employee-owned, not for profit business.

This story reports their new business model showing that the future of health care could be co-operative.
Information

DIRECTIONS

The Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities (Waiting Times) Directions 2010 (8th March 2010)
These Directions come into force 1st April 2010.
Directions

DISABILITIES

Sharing the learning: user-led organisations action and learning sites 2008-2010 (17th March 2010)
This guide describes the background to establishing the user-led organisations action and learning sites, and provides a snapshot of the good practice resources resulting from this project.
Guide

Disabled children's services national indicator 2009-10: Primary Care Trusts reports (March 2010)
A collection of disabled children's services national indicator reports setting out findings for each primary care trust (PCT) area for which there was sufficient response from parents to the 2009-2010 survey to measure parental satisfaction of services for disabled children.

Each report provides indicator and sub-indicator scores, as well as analysis of parents' comments relating to services in each of the following areas: health, education, and care and family support.

There are also comparison Excel spreadsheets for PCTs which allow for easy comparisons between local areas.
Reports

PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS

Cancer Awareness and Early Diagnosis Programme funding (8th March 2010)
Letter announcing funding for 2010/11 to develop or build on existing services/interventions that aim to promote early diagnosis of cancer, and inviting proposals from primary care trusts by 28 April 2010.
Information

NHS Pharmaceutical Services - Transfer of the Global Sum to PCT Allocations (10th March 2010)
The attached letter draws attention to important considerations in managing funding for NHS services provided by community pharmacies and appliance contractors, following devolvement of the centrally held funding to PCTs from 1 April 2010.
Information

New value for money (VfM) profiles launched (17th March 2010)
The Audit Commission has launched new value for money (VfM) profiles for PCTs, fire and rescue authorities, police authorities and councils. These are more user-friendly, have a clearer focus on VfM, track levels of spend to assess the impact of improvements, and compare spend and performance to other bodies.
Information

PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS

Easements to quality and outcomes framework (QOF): patient experience indicators 7 and 8 (24th February 2010)
Dear colleague letter which provides advice for PCTs on calculating the easements to the thresholds for Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) indicators PE7 and PE8 contained in the Directions on the swine flu (H1N1) vaccination agreement for clinical priority groups.
Letter

Monitoring use of money to implement End of Life Care Strategy - PCTs (25th February 2010)

Templates to monitor how the additional money provided to help implement the End of Life Care Strategy in 2009/10 is being invested have been issued to SHA and PCT Directors of Finance.

Templates

COMMUNITY SERVICES

Transforming Community Services: The assurance and approvals process for PCT provided community services (5th February 2010)
The NHS Operating Framework 2010/11 set a requirement for proposals for future forms of PCT-provided community services to be agreed with SHAs by 31 March 2010.

Building on Enabling new patterns of provision, further guidance has been published that aims to support:

• PCTs as they develop proposals for the future shape of their community services;
• SHAs in their role to assure PCT proposals for community provider organisational form.

Guidance

PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS

GP out of hours services: letter from David Nicholson (4th February 2010)
This letter announces the publication of the report 'General practice out-of-hours services: project to consider and assess current arrangements'
Letter

General practice out-of-hours services: project to consider and assess current arrangements (4th February 2010)
In June 2009, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) began an investigation into the provision of out-of-hours primary care services in five PCTs by Take Care Now (TCN). The CQC’s enquiry was prompted by the tragic death of a patient in February 2008 after he was administered 100mg of diamorphine by a locum doctor from Germany. In October 2009, the CQC issued an interim statement on this investigation, which prompted David Colin-Thomé to write to PCTs, and the Minister of State for Health, Mike O’Brien, to ask the Department of Health to jointly lead a short piece of work to review the local commissioning and provision of out-of-hours services.
Report

Delivering Quality in Primary Care: Performers Lists - Language Knowledge (4th February 2010)
Interim guidance to PCTs in England to assist in making decisions about whether or not a doctor has sufficient knowledge of English to be included on the local performers list.
Guidance

Commissioning Health. A comparison of English Primary Care Trusts. Preliminary statistical analysis (February 2010)
This report, based on preliminary research which brings together a range of economic analysis methods, compares the efficiency of the English PCTs in producing a valued output; the health of their populations, in relation to the costs expended, as measured through programme budgeting data.

The key message for policy makers is that all PCTS are performing at a similar level and there would need to be considerable action at system level to achieve significant change in the efficiency of PCTs.
Report

Chemotherapy Services in the Community: a Guide for PCTs (18th February 2010)
Chemotherapy Services in the Community provides a guide to PCTs on the potential to develop chemotherapy services in the community. It will help each PCT, together with their Cancer Network, to consider whether there are further opportunities to devolve chemotherapy from cancer centres and cancer units to community settings while maintaining safety and quality and delivering an efficient service.
Guidance

AUDIT

Annual audit letters 2008/09 (29th January 2010)
The Audit Commission publish annual audit letters to enhance the openness and transparency of the audit process, for which they have overall responsibility. Annual audit letters summarise key matters arising from the yearly audit in clear language for executives and stakeholders.
Audit letters

CHILDREN/YOUNG PEOPLE

Giving children a healthy start (3rd February 2010)
This report assesses the local implementation of national policy from 1999 to 2009 on the health of children from birth to five years of age in England. It examines local service planning and delivery, including priority setting, and how local bodies can improve service delivery and access for vulnerable groups such as black and minority ethnic (BME) communities, lone and teenage parents. The report discusses the impact of government funding on health outcomes for the under-fives; how effectively local bodies manage their resources; and the extent to which they are providing good value for money. It provides recommendations for national and local bodies, as well as examples of notable practice.
Report

Small steps towards a healthier life (2nd February 2010)
The Food Standards Agency has officially launched SmallSteps4Life – an interactive website to motivate young people to take simple steps towards improving their health and well-being, both inside and outside the classroom.
Information

Promoting the emotional health of children and young people: guidance for Children's Trust partnerships, including how to deliver (January 2010)
The emotional health of children and young people is increasingly recognised as being fundamental to the wellbeing and future prospects of individuals and communities. Emotional health is nurtured primarily in the home, but we know that practitioners and services can and do make a difference.

This non-statutory guidance is for directors and assistant directors of children’s services, directors of public health, commissioning managers in local authorities and Primary Care Trusts. It aims to help Children’s Trust partners to develop a strategic approach to improving the emotional health of children and young people, in line with the aims of NI 50.
Guidance

PUBLIC HEALTH

Health Profile 2009 - North West (26th January 2010)
This profile gives a snapshot of health in the North West. It is designed to help local government and primary care trusts tackle health inequalities and improve people’s health.
Document

Modelled estimates and projections of CVD (25th January 2010)
Estimates and projections of the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) for all Local Authorities and Primary Care Trusts in England. A technical document accompanies these.
Documents

EVENT - A new year, a new start for positive mental health & wellbeing (27th January 2010)
The programme and presentations from this event that was held at the Stobart Stadium, Widnes are now available.
Presentations

CARE/CARERS

The revised National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care (13th January 2010)
This letter draws the attention of primary care trusts and strategic health authorities to two aspects of the revised National Framework for NHS Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care in terms of governance and commissioning.
Framework

NHS

The standard NHS contracts for acute hospital, mental health, community and ambulance services and supporting guidance (18th January 2010)
The NHS standard contracts for Mental Health and Learning Disability, Ambulance Services, Acute Hospital and Community Services are published today.

The contracts support the NHS Operating Framework for 20010-2011: The contracts should be read in conjunction with the Principles and Rules for Co-operation and Competition and the PCT Procurement Guide.
Documents

Funding and Performance of Healthcare Systems in the Four Countries of the UK Before and After Devolution (20th January 2010)
Political devolution means there are now four National Health Services in the United Kingdom. The health services of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are all funded by the UK taxpayer, but have developed different systems of governance and different methods of providing healthcare.

Funding and Performance of Healthcare Systems in the Four Countries of the UK Before and After Devolution examines the impact of this by studying key performance indicators for the NHS in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland at three time points – 1996/7, 2002/3 and 2006/7. The report also undertakes a completely new comparison of NHS performance in the English regions and the devolved countries. This is the first time such an analysis has been conducted.
Report

The operating framework for the NHS in England 2010/11 (4th January 2010)
This briefing details the key points of the operating framework, the white paper and the Pre-Budget Report.
Briefing

NHS European Office: policy priorities 2010 (5th January 2010)
The NHS European Office has published its policy priorities for 2010. The work of the European Office covers a wide range of EU policy and legislative proposals of key relevance to the NHS; as a provider and commissioner of healthcare, as an employer and as a business.

This document outlines the main policy areas on which the European Office will be working throughout the calendar year.
Document

The new EU Remedies Directive: proven procurement is of the essence (13th January 2010)
New EU rules which improve access to rapid and effective review procedures for suppliers who allege that public authorities have breached procurement rules have taken effect in the UK.

The EU Remedies Directive amends the UK Public Contract Regulations and will affect all procurement contracts commenced after 20 December 2009.

The NHS European Office have published this briefing to raise awareness amongst NHS managers involved in procurement of the key changes to the rules and to highlight new provisions in the law which public authorities can use to protect themselves from challenge.
Briefing

Controlling public spending: The NHS in a period of tight funding (7th January 2010)
Policy Exchange research, which included a roundtable discussion with a number of senior academics and business leaders with expertise in the NHS, considers some of the options for the NHS in a period of tight funding. They believe that in order to protect the NHS into the future the next Government needs to make bold decisions on:
Performance related pay
Reducing variations in clinical practice
GP fundholding
Decommissioning services
Transformational change project
Report

PHARMACY

Use of medication in care homes (7th January 2010)
Recently published research commissioned by the DH as part of the patient safety programme identified considerable scope for improvement of prescription, dispensing, administration and monitoring of medicines in care homes. The study's authors recommend clear local leadership and improved inter-professional communication.
Documents

PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS

PCT Value for money profiles (15th January 2010)
The new primary care trust (PCT) value for money (VfM) profiles are available as an interactive web tool.

The tool provides comparative information about a selected PCT's performance in managing costs and delivering outputs (activities) and outcomes (health improvements for local people). It also tracks performance over time to see whether improvements are being achieved in line with priorities and how the trend in performance compares to others.
Tool

Practice-based commissioning budget guidance for 2010/11 (14th January 2010)
PCTs are responsible for ensuring that practices receive an indicative budget that reflects the needs of their population as accurately as possible. This allows a practice to access a 'fair share' of the resources available to the whole of the PCT for its patients. The Department has updated the toolkit that can be used to determine weighted capitation indicative budgets at practice level. This is part of our ongoing commitment to refine the methodology and improve accuracy.
Toolkit

GP Extended Opening Hours (7th January 2010)
PCTs are to continue to progress extended opening hours in GP practices, particularly for patients of practices who are not offering this service. The current DES rolls forward in 2010/11 and PCTs are asked to submit plans saying how they will make full use of the resources available for extended opening.
Document

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

HEALTH SERVICES

Fracture prevention services: an economic evaluation (15th December 2009)
This economic evaluation models the costs and benefits from establishing a fracture liaison service, to reduce the risk of secondary fractures.
Report

PRIMARY CARE TRUSTS

Use of Resources Good Practice and Case Studies (17th December 2009)
To help auditors and audited bodies identify good practice, the Audit Commission have published some case studies from the 2008/09 auditors' use of resources work.
Case Studies

An overview of the new arrangements under Park IX of the Drug Tariff for the provision of stoma and urology appliances, and related services in primary care (22nd December 2009)
The Department of Health have published guidance on the new arrangements, as announced in April 2009 following the Part IX Review for the NHS supply of certain appliances in primary care require changes to the NHS Pharmaceutical Service Regulations, Directions and amendments to the Drug Tariff.

The new regulations will come into effect on 1st April 2010 and a transitional period of nine months from 1 April 2010 gives pharmacies and appliance contractors sufficient time to ensure they are able to comply with the new terms of service by 31 December 2010.
Guidance

Out of hours training for GP registrars (17th December 2009)
Letter to PCTs Chief Executives regarding their responsibility to commission increased GP Out of Hours training.
Letter

SOCIAL CARE

Transfer of commissioning and funding of social care for adults with learning disabilities from the NHS to local Government: final returns for 2009/10 by 15 January 2010 (17th December 2009)
From April 2009, funding and commissioning of social care for adults with learning disabilities transferred from the NHS to local authorities. The Department of Health have produced two letters, one for commissioners in primary care trusts and local authorities and one for strategic health authorities and deputy regional directors of social care, which gives further guidance.
Letters

COMMUNITY SERVICES

Improving information for stakeholders: a report of a PCT and SHA working group to improve community information (2nd December 2009)
This report sets out the findings of a joint DH/SHA/PCT working group to improve community information. The report provides a framework for commissioners and providers to improve information on community services and include a number of case studies from NHS organisations.
Report

Quality framework for community services: directory of indicators. Draft version (1st December 2009)
This directory sets out a list of quality indicators that are currently being developed for publication. The Department is piloting these indicators at 23 sites and is looking to publish amendments or changes to these at the end of the year.
Publication