Commissioning – Page 198
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Comment'There are no winners while there is 'them and us' tribalism in the NHS'
“Them and us”. All too often an off-hand remark and the death knell of a beautiful conversation, usually with the word “tariff” thrown in.
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NewsGPs commission controversial complementary therapies
Having been given the purse strings to the NHS commissioning budget, a host of GPs opted to commission complementary therapies, including acupuncture and aromatherapy.
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HSJ Knowledge
The spirit of independent enterprise still requires sustainable business planning
Employee- and community-led services are still battling to change the philosophy and approach of staff and trusts alike, but the benefits these organisations could bring to service delivery are worth the effort, argues Kevin Jacquiss.
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HSJ KnowledgeThe role of patient panels in consortia commissioning
The ability for local people to influence healthcare services in their region should be an important focus for commissioning consortia - and patient panels provide a perfect opportunity.
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Comment'Without a firm battle plan, consortia might find themselves neither here nor there'
The grand old health secretary risks getting the new consortia stuck on the hill, unless a change in strategy to push them higher up the slope of success is attempted.
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NewsCommissioning funds used to pay for GP basics
GPs have been able to boost their take-home pay by using commissioning funds rather than their general contractors’ income to buy basic medical equipment and fund practice refurbishments, an HSJ investigation reveals.
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CommentNoel Plumridge: feeling the squeeze
Dupuytren’s contracture is a condition that causes fingers to bend towards the palm. Named after the French surgeon who first described the condition in 1834, it mainly affects men - a reported one in five men aged over 60 - and is most prevalent among people of northern European descent.
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News'Sensible boundary' needed on GP competition rules, says Monitor
Monitor has stressed the need to avoid an overly restrictive approach to regulating competition issues affecting GP commissioners.
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NewsConfed warns over EU purchase rule change
Proposals to scrap the barrier protecting health services from European procurement rules could place a “significant administrative burden” on NHS organisations, the NHS Confederation has warned.
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NewsHalf of PCTs employing temporary executives
Almost half of primary care trusts have executive directors working in an “interim” or “acting” capacity, an HSJ investigation has revealed.
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HSJ Local
Gloucestershire consortium made pathfinder
STRUCTURE: The commissioning consortium in the primary care trust’s area has been granted “pathfinder” status by the Department of Health.
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NewsDH forbids PCT cluster companies
The Department of Health is set to tell primary care trusts they should stop establishing “shadow” commissioning consortia as limited companies.
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NewsConsortia decisions could be voted on via mobiles
New X Factor-style technology could allow GPs to vote on decisions about health service commissioning and service redesign using their mobile phones.
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NewsReadmissions penalties surpass savings target
The tougher non-payment policy for emergency readmissions could cost some hospitals even more in 2011-12 than the planned 1.5 per cent cut in tariff prices.
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NewsAnalysed: government announces third wave pathfinders
The announcement of the third tranche of “pathfinder” GP consortia takes the proportion of the English population covered to just over two thirds.
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NewsBMA leader questions GP cash rewards
A government plan to reward GPs financially if they perform well could be considered “disgracefully unethical”, a doctors’ leader has said.
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NewsUp to £800m GP income could be linked to commissioning
Some £800m of GP practice income could be linked to commissioning performance.
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NewsReforms 'may not give GPs freedom'
The government’s pledge to give GPs freedom over buying services for patients could be a hollow promise, according to doctors’ leaders.
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HSJ Knowledge'Will community services boil down to "any willing price"?'
At a recent senior company team meeting, I was discussing the changes envisaged in the Health and Social Care Bill and raised the notion about writing this article and calling it “any willing price”.