The engagement cycle: patient and public engagement (PPE) in world class commissioning

The engagement cycle is a way of approaching patient engagement when commissioning services. It highlights who needs to do what to engage people at each stage of the commissioning cycle. It can be used to facilitate improvements in world class commissioning, particularly concerning Competency Three - engaging with patients and the public.

New publication schedule for New@PCC

This newsletter will be published on Wednesday beginning with the next issue, which will appear on 27 May. The logic behind the change is to take the weekend out of the equation which allows us to bring you news that is as fresh and up to date as possible.

NHS PCC welcomes news from PCTs about local initiatives, success stories and good practice. Contact Maria Axford, communications co-ordinator.

Promoting the health and wellbeing of looked-after children - revised guidance

This consultation document is a revised version of the existing guidance, Promoting the Health of Looked After Children, which was published by the Department of Health in 2002. The revised guidance will be statutory for PCTs and strategic health authorities as well as local authorities. The consultation closes on 3 August 2009.

SHA dental leads event

The second SHA access meeting for dental leads will take place on Wednesday 20 May in central London. Ben Dyson will lead the session and Professor Jimmy Steele will link the findings of his review with the dental access programme.

Building foundations events programme expands

After the success of its introductory events for to world-class commissioning last winter, NHS PCC is running a second series of the Level 1 medical, community pharmacy and dentistry events on the following dates.

• 27 May, community pharmacy, London
• 5 June, dentistry, London
• 24 June, primary medical care, Leeds

Look out for dates for Level 2 intermediate events for commissioners, which will be running later in the summer and publicised via New@PCC.

Level 1 events are introductory and refresher events for managers. More experienced commissioners should consider Level 2 events.

See the events pages of the PCC website for more information.

Role of personal development in WCC

These events aim to support PCTs to develop their workforce and realise benefits for the organisation in the journey to becoming world-class commissioners. Key dates are:

• 1 June, Leeds
• 26 June, Birmingham
• 9 July, London

The programme will enable improvement in individual and collective commissioning skills.

New perspectives will be delivered on the importance of personal development planning including retention of staff, succession planning and preparing individuals for future roles.

Speakers will include Clive Hutchinson, managing director of Cougar Automation, winner of the Sunday Times Best Company to Work For award, Professor Patricia Oakley and Peter Mackie OBE.

The event is aimed at anyone charged with leading and developing PCTs and those involved in the primary care commissioning cycle. Further details will be on the PCC events pages.

Putting the patient in control

Patients are a step closer to getting more say over their healthcare services as plans for a national pilot project reach the next stage.

Following a call for expressions of interest for sites across England to take part in the first trials of personal health budgets, 68 projects involving 75 PCTs have been awarded provisional pilot status.

Lord Darzi first announced personal health budgets in his report High Quality Care for All last year. Under the proposals, patients will have greater involvement in how money is spent on their healthcare needs, giving them more control over what services they use, who provides them and how they are delivered.

Healthy mind, healthy body: how liaison psychiatry services can transform quality and productivity in acute settings

This briefing looks at opportunities to improve quality and efficiency in acute services by focusing on the needs of the significant number of patients who also have mental health problems complicating their care and discharge. It sets out some good practice examples together with academic evidence to build a business case for liaison psychiatry services.

Primary care service framework for Gypsies and Travellers

Look out for publication later this week of a new primary care service framework from NHS PCC covering Gypsies, Travellers and other communities whose health needs require PCTs to develop more flexible approaches.

Final report by the GP earnings and expenses enquiry

This report will be published by the NHS Information Centre tomorrow (19 May). It includes new analysis not available in the interim publication of October 2008, including information on earnings and expenses by SHA.

GP Flyers, which show a range of published information on GPs at SHA level, will be released by the NHS IC on the same day. They include information on earnings, QOF, workforce and the GP Patient Survey.

Urgent care: a practical guide to transforming same-day care in general practice

This event, hosted by the Primary Care Foundation and based on their recent report. The event will be held on 25 June at King's Fund, London.

Aims of the event are to:

• Highlight the findings and key issues from the recent report 'Urgent care: a practical guide to transforming same-day care in general practice'
• Debate the wider policy implications for urgent care and general practice
• Promote current examples of good practice
• Highlight how practices are rapidly transforming their practice process
• Understand how you can implement change locally

See the PCC website for bookings and further information.

Report of the national patient choice survey

This report gives the final results of around 76,000 responses to the 16th national patient choice survey commissioned to assess the implementation of choice at PCT level. The series of surveys, conducted by Ipsos MORI on behalf of the Department of Health, monitor patient awareness of choice and recall of having been offered a choice of hospital for their first outpatient appointment.

Health Committee report on top-up fees finds continuing cause for concern

In recent years the NHS has been criticised both for not funding certain drugs and for withdrawing treatment for patients who chose to purchase privately additional drugs which the NHS refused to fund. Following Professor Richard's report, 'Improving access to medicines for NHS patients', the Department of Health's instruction that NHS trusts should immediately cease the practice of withdrawing funding for NHS patients who had purchased additional treatment was generally welcomed. However some of the evidence in this report raised concerns about the risks of potential disadvantages to NHS patients including the formation of a "two-tier" system.

Pharmacy bodies team up to prepare for swine flu

The principal bodies representing pharmacy have pledged to work together to support their members in the event of a flu pandemic. The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, National Pharmacy Association, Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain and Company Chemists Association have shared information to ensure consistent and timely updates are received by pharmacists as the situation develops.

PhwSI skin care framework now available

The latest in the series of frameworks for pharmacists with special interests, on the subject of skin care, is now available. See the PCC website for further details.

Salaried dental services benchmarking

A data specification and explanatory covering letter for the salaried dental services benchmarking project will be sent out on Wednesday 20 May. To ensure inclusion in this project, PCTs will need to complete and return their data specification forms by 26 June latest. As with the medical benchmarking project, a helpdesk number will be available to assist PCTs with any queries. The project will

• Provide an accurate picture of the provision of SPDCS in England
• Identify the range and types of service and their associated costs
• Assess numbers, range and specialist qualifications of SPDCS staff
• Consider access, quality and effectiveness - eg looking at referral criteria
• Identify good practice and innovation

If you have any queries or would like to request the data specification and details, please contact your local PCCA or Liz Stopp at elizabeth.stopp@pcc.nhs.uk or on 07920 450899.

Dental commissioning statistics Q1 2009

Figures from the Department of Health show an increase of 0.4% to 83.3 million in the number of Units of Dental Activity (UDAs) commissioned as at 31 March 2009 since the last reporting period in December 2008.

NHS dental statistics, Q3 2008/09

This report will be published by the NHS Information Centre on Thursday 21 May.

New dental access programme resources coming soon

A dedicated access page on the NHS PCC website is due to go live on 22 May. It will include a series of briefing notes and case studies, the first of which will look at:

• How PCTs in the north-east have used cluster working to achieve economies of scale and more effective commissioning
• The range of dental advice available to PCTs
• Measures taken by Brighton PCT to manage poorly performing providers

A model contract is also due to be published later in May.

If you are involved in commissioning dental services at an SHA or PCT, you can request the Access@dental newsletter by contacting linda.joy@pcc.nhs.uk.

Latest Steele update now live on DH website

The latest update from Professor Jimmy Steele, NHS dentistry across the globe is available on the DH website.

GOC consults on 2010-2015 strategy

The General Optical Council (GOC) has launched an open consultation on its five-year strategy. Registrants, patients and the public, and partner organisations are encouraged to have their say on the GOC's role and work priorities for 2010-2015.

The deadline for consultation responses is 31 August 2009. Download the consultation document and respond online at www.optical.org. Alternatively, contact Maria Claridge on 020 7307 3469 to request a paper copy.

General Ophthalmic Services workforce statistics

This report of statistics for England and Wales to the end of the calendar year 2008 will be published by the NHS Information Centre on Thursday 21 May.

Campaign to highlight the dangers of eye cancer in children

World Retinoblastoma Awareness Week, which aims to alert the general public and eye care professionals about the risk to children of developing eye cancer, ends tomorrow (19 May). This year, for the first time, organisations with an interest in the condition co-ordinated action on a global scale. The Childhood Eye Cancer Trust based at the Royal London Hospital publishes a newsletter on the subject.

Locality Commissioning Managers - NHS Dorset

Subscriber only events

Other

Event open to all

May 2009

• 19th: EoE QOF network - Hilton London Stansted Airport Hotel, Stansted CM24 1SF
• 19th: West Midlands World Class Commissioning of Primary Care & PBC Reinvigoration - The National Motorcycle Museum, B92 0EJ
• 20th: East of England Regional PCTs Dental Network - Hilton London Stansted Airport Hotel, Stansted CM24 1SF
• 20th: West Midlands - QOF Planning Meeting for 5% Random Checks - Holiday Inn Express Redditch, B97 6AE
• 21st: BY INVITATION ONLY: Optometric Adviser's Group Meeting - Thistle Euston,
• 22nd: South Central Eyecare Network Meeting - Hilton Newbury Centre, Berkshire RG14 7HL
• 27th: Building Foundations Towards World Class Commissioning for Primary Care - Pharmacy Level 1 - Guoman Tower, London E1W 1LD

June 2009

• 1st: World Class Commissioning Competencies - Personal Development Awareness (North) - Park Plaza Hotel, Leeds, Leeds LS1 5NS
• 3rd: NHS North East - Dental Access Workshop 1 - Radisson SAS Durham,
• 4th: NHS South East Coast - Dental Access Workshop 1 - Sofitel London Gatwick, RH6 0PH
• 5th: Building Foundations Towards World Class Commissioning for Primary Care - Dental Level 1 - Guoman Tower, London E1W 1LD
• 9th: NHS West Midlands - Dental Access Workshop 1 - Aston Business School, Birmingham B4 7ET
• 9th: NHS London Dental Access Solutions - County Hall Park Plaza, London SE1 7RY
• 9th: NW QOF assessor training - Doubletree by Hilton Chester hotel , Chester CH2 3PD
• 9th: South West Eyecare Network Meeting - The Cleve Hotel & Country Club, Wellington TA21 8SN
• 10th: South Central World Class Commissioning - Newbury Racecourse, Berkshire RG14 7NZ
• 11th: South West Home Oxygen Service Event - The Cleve Hotel & Country Club, Wellington TA21 8SN
• 16th: South West Dental Network Event - Holiday Inn Taunton, TA1 2UA
• 17th: W Midlands Region: 5% Random Check Process for 2008/09 - NHS West Midlands, Birmingham B16 9RG.
• 17th: NHS North West - Dental Access Workshop 1 - Ramada Manchester Piccadilly, M1 4PH
• 24th: Building Foundations Towards World Class Commissioning for Primary Care - Medical Level 1 - Village Leeds South, Tingley LS27 0TS
• 25th: Urgent care: a practical guide to transforming same-day care in general practice - King's Fund, London W1A 0AX
• 26th: EoE Primary Care finance leads network - Hilton Stansted Airport, Stansted CM24 1SF
• 26th: World Class Commissioning Competencies - Personal Development Awareness (Midlands) - Allocation TBC,
• 30th: World Class Commissioning of Pharmacy Services and Pharmaceutical Needs Assessments - Allocation TBC,

For further event dates please see www.pcc.nhs.uk/events