Bulletin 23.04.2012

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Bulletin 23.04.2012

Fair Commissioning Charter
The GPC carried a motion that stated that the GPC would encourage any clinical commissioning group (CCG) which wishes to sign a Fair Commissioning Charter that includes that the CCG will:

  1. Work to improve the quality of and access to local health services, and reduce health inequalities;
  2. Develop a culture of genuinely clinician-led commissioning, taking decisions in the best interests of the local population;
  3. Engage with patients and the public with respect to decisions taken about their health services;
  4. Operate in a transparent and open manner, and in the interests of transparency, not engage in any contracts or negotiations which impose conditions of commercial confidentiality;

    In the further interests of transparency will take decisions in public unless required to hold them in private for legal reasons.

  5. Resist any qualified provider being imposed from sources outwith the CCG;
  6. Always take decisions in the light of the likely effect on the important relationship between individual GPs and their patients.
  7. Establish and strengthen working relationships with local medical committees, further enabling successful outcomes in commissioning.

 

CCG Constitutions
As CCGs focus attention on authorisation, many are drawing up constitutions. The existing GPC constitution guidance outlines key elements of a constitution that GPs should check are included. It is vital that the CCG constitution has the support of member practices and that the constitution outlines how the CCG will engage with the LMC.

GPC / BMA Law have always advocated that any CCG constitution should be clear, robust and comprehensible. Although the NHS Constitution is helpful, it is not really a template constitution, it is more along the lines of detailed guidance. Huge sections of the Department of Health (DH) document are devoted to quotes and references to the Health and Social Care Act, which is confusing and unnecessarily burdensome in the context of a comprehensible template. This makes it unduly difficult to convert into a working practical document. Furthermore, the DH Constitution states that it has yet to be approved by lawyers. BMA Law has a template constitution in place which is being updated in line with both the Act and in respect of any agreed policy and guidance (whether current or future). This is accompanied by a detailed seminar which addresses all salient issues such as conflict of interest, procurement, engagement of consultants, internal governance, application for membership of the CCG etc. This includes advice on how to handle these issues in a practical way and how to keep good audit trails. If you would like more details please call Diane Smith on 020 7383 6019 or email at info.bmalaw@bma.org.uk.

Enhanced GP Training
The RCGP’s educational proposal for extending the GP training programme to four years was approved by the Medical Programme Board on April 18. This follows an agreement between the RCGP, COGPED, COPMED and GPC on a set of principles for the implementation of the enhanced programme. An agreement will be required between the aforementioned organisations as to how the implementation will work in practice, and the proposal remains subject to confirmation by Medical Education England on 26 June.

Supply of Non-Compliant Nutritional Products
The Department of Health Advisory Committee on Borderline Substances (ACBS), which is responsible for advising on the prescribing of certain foodstuffs and toiletries, has produced this guidance note on the supply of non-compliant nutritional products which highlights the problem of clinical errors created due to non-compliant stock entering the medical supply chain. Non-compliance can include instances where nutritional products have different formulations, are incorrectly labelled, or where there is incorrect information provision.

Cancer Awareness Campaign
This letter provides and overview of the national and local cancer awareness raising campaigns.

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