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2/15/2012
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Sigma conference breaking news: NHS clinical lead pledges to promote pharmacy's role in CCGs
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Dr James Kingsland
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Community pharmacy appeared to be given a timely boost at the Sigma Annual Conference in Thailand when Dr James Kingsland, the national clinical lead for the NHS, declared his intention to push the profession’s case for greater involvement on clinical commissioning structures to the government.
In his report this month to the chief executive of the NHS, Sir David Nicholson, and the Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, Dr Kingsland insisted he would help to promote the role of pharmacy in the construction of clinical commissioning networks in the run-up to the April 1, 2013 deadline when CCGs are due to go live.
Dr Kingsland revealed here in Phuket that he has already asked Fin McCaul, the chairman of the Independent Pharmacy Federation, to be a part of the clinical commissioning advisory group and called on other pharmacy figures to step forward and take on the role of clinical leaders.
“This month’s report should be strongly flavoured by the debates we’ve had (in Thailand), specifically about the multi-disciplinary input into Clinical Commissioning Group development, and that will be a strong case for this report,” Dr Kingsland said.
“Leading on from that, I do some work on the authorisation of CCGs and there are six debates that need to be fulfilled for CCG authorisation by April 1 2013. One of the debates is about the multi-disciplinary team.
“It is my pledge to make sure it is strengthened in a way that doesn’t just have the rhetoric of a consortia or a nurse on the board but will demonstrate, as the process goes forward, that the true multi-disciplinary working, the voice of primary care contractors and wider community, is part of that authorisation process.
“I will be asking Fin (McCaul) to be part of a national clinical commissioning network. We’re looking to identify clinical leaders. The commissioning board will talk to the colleges, the BMA (British Medical Association) and other representative organisations but there does need to be an interaction with the front line, clinical leaders who have got their own connect.
“We’re looking for people like Fin who would have a strong voice in this network but be able to collect information from a wide network of community pharmacy.”
Dr Kingsland’s call for pharmacy to step forward was a warning as much as an expression of opportunity, since the profession may not get many more chances to prove itself as GPs brace themselves to take significant control of the NHS.
Dr Kingsland said pharmacy must get involved in the debates swirling around clinical commissioning networks and show what it can offer.
“There will be regulations if and when this (Health and Social Care) Bill goes through, regulations which underpin the development. On the personnel issue, I’ve heard about this national programme to help the implementation of national commissioning, part of which is the development of networks,” he said.
“On a website called NHS Networks, there is a site called the Healthcare Professionals Network. That is chaired by a pharmacist, it is an area for debate for issues about how things are developing locally, shared best practice and problem solving as well.
“If there are others who wish to be involved in the national clinical commissioning network, I will take your names and write to you in an official capacity and explain it in a bit more detail.”
The view that pharmacy will play an integral part in strengthening the clinical commissioning network, Dr Kingsland said, would be taken to the highest level of the NHS and the government. “There are three things; strengthening the multi-disciplinary team input, secondly my report this month to the Secretary of State’s office and David Nicholson’s office will have this as the main flavour and thirdly, the national clinical commissioning network, I want to strengthen it from all primary care disciplines but particularly from pharmacy.”
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