Consultancy Success in the Country’s First Outcomes-Based Contract

Pleasing news just in is that the bid I’ve been working on this year for Mental Health Services in Oxfordshire has been awarded to the consortium I have been supporting based upon the documentation and presentation which I wrote and edited. It’s worth up to £135 million over three years to the providers.

Since February this year I’ve been working with a consortium of providers of NHS services by facilitating a group of their Chief Executives and Chief Operating Officer in Oxfordshire to formalise their governance arrangements, by challenging their proposed service model and working arrangements and by writing their formal submission and presentation to the CCG.

The decision to name Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and its partners as “most capable provider” was confirmed at the CCG’s September board meeting.

The Health Service Journal, as usual, has the full story:

Oxfordshire CCG clinical chair Joe McManners told HSJ it decided against going out to competitive tender because Oxford Health was judged to be in the best position to provide the service.

Its decision had been based on a “rigorous and formal” process, he added.
Dr McManners said commissioning a single pathway would “automatically mean” providers having to work together “effectively as one”.
The new contract would see Oxford Health and local organisations planning care collectively with the specified outcomes in mind instead of merely referring patients for treatment.
“That is much more likely to happen if they’re working as a partnership.
“The level of cooperation between the trust and the voluntary sector is already a lot higher than it was – already they’re talking about planning the services together.
“The key with integration is relationships [but] the fact that the incentives are aligned will help.”
The deal is expected to be finalised later this year, to go live in 2015-16.
Oxfordshire CCG is also developing a similar, integrated outcomes based contract for older people’s services with Oxford Health and Oxford University Hospitals Trust. This contract is also not expected to go to tender.
The most capable provider is likely to be a consortium led by the local acute provider and is due be announced this financial year.

Oxfordshire CCGs September Board Meeting papers show the strengths of the proposal including the benefits for patients.

The strengths of the submission are as follows:

The partnership was able to demonstrate a high level of joint working, both in the development of the bid, the common approach going forward and in the plans for integrating services to deliver outcomes.
A significant amount of what looks likely to be effective and transformational innovation: particularly in the focus on recovery.
An impressive and compelling commitment to the importance of user and carer engagement and how that can enrich the partnership and support the delivery of better outcomes.
Realism about those areas and potential barriers that will continue to challenge, for instance the need to bring professional groups on the journey, and to continue to work with out of scope services to remove barriers to the delivery of outcomes.
A real and compelling sense of organizational leadership to achieve better outcomes.
Passion and sense of ambition across the Partnership to seize the opportunity of outcomes based contracting.

I’ve also been working with Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust and Oxford University Hospitals Trust (which runs the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre and Horton General Hospital) on the Older People’s Outcomes Based Commissioning project mentioned in the Health Service Journal article. I look forward to hearing the results.

The Outcomes Based Commissioning Contract will be the first in the Country. It’s been a pleasure to play my part in bringing improved outcomes to patients.