Commissioning mental health services in England:
a collaboration between RCPsych, RCGP, NMHDU, and the
NHS Confederation
What is this project?
The new White Paper document, Liberating the NHS:
Commissioning for Patients, signals a significant shift in the
way in which many mental health services will be commissioned and
held to account.
Commissioning for Patients details the Government's
intentions to introduce both GP-led commissioning and a new NHS
Commissioning Board.
To address the implications of this proposal, the RCPsych in
collaboration with the Royal College of General Practitioners,
National Mental Health Development Unit, and the NHS Confederation
are working together to address the fundamental question: what
do the proposed reforms for the NHS hold for the future
commissioning of mental health services?
Stage one: invited seminar
In September 2010, an invited seminar was held at the Royal
College of Psychiatrists. Attended by Professor Dinesh Bhugra
(RCPsych), Clare Gerada (Chair Elect, RCGP) and over 60
representatives from primary care, psychiatry, management, policy,
and service user/care organisations, the seminar considered
the:
- implications: the implications of new forms of
commissioning for mental health services over the short, medium,
and long-term;
- principles: the key principles and values that need to
be embedded in the new system of GP commissioning for mental
health;
- relationships: how relationships between GPs,
psychiatrists and other health and social care professionals should
operate;
- pathways: the central issues that need to be addressed
in developing new and revised pathways and systems;
- outcomes: it will aim to inform critical thinking and
responses to the new White Paper document, Commissioning for
Patients.
The seminar agenda and slides are available to download
below:
A summary report of the seminar will be published
shortly. The seminar was hosted by the Primary Care in
Mental Health Forum, which works to bring together the members of
the RCPsych and RCGP.
Stage two: White Paper response
The relevant findings of the seminar - along with views from the
membership, Faculties, Divisions, and other groupings within
RCPsych - have now been incorporated into the College's response to the White
Paper.
Stage three: shared values, forthcoming guide, and 2011
conference
Through a joint working group (spanning RCPsych, RCGP, NHS
Confederation, and NMHDU) the following work wil be undertaken in
2010/2011:
- a joint paper on shared values and principles in mental health
commissioning
- a guide on commissioning mental health services (led by
NMHDU)
- a 2011 conference on mental health commissioning (further
details to follow)
Further information
Contact Chris Fitch - cfitch@rcpsych.ac.uk
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