NHS ACE Achieving Commissioning Excellence

About Achieving Commissioning Excellence

NHS Alliance, in partnership with Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK, decided to launch the Achieving Commissioning Excellence website to support the development of commissioning in the English NHS.

The NHS is a resource-constrained system. The current government’s policy of clinical commissioning is continuing a trend that dates back nearly two decades of ensuring that commissioning – the process of planning and providing or purchasing healthcare – aims to meet the population needs covered by the NHS in England (the NHS in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales each have different policy priorities).

This website aims to provide information, resources and help. Our interactive forum will regularly host discussions with leaders from NHS Alliance and beyond, where you can submit your observations, success stories, challenges and questions – and help others, too.

Funding
Achieving Commissioning Excellence is a partnership between NHS Alliance and Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Ltd. This site has been funded by Novartis, but all editorial content is created & maintained by NHS Alliance alone.

Who we are
Editor – Andy Cowper
Andy Cowper is a journalist and editor who specialises in health policy issues. He edits the Health Policy Insight website and also its subscription-based spin-off, Health Policy Intelligence. Health Policy Insight is a policy analysis, comment, debate, features, interviews and news review service, launched in June 2008.

Andy launched and edits NHS Alliance’s Clinical Commissioning Connect publications Update and The Intelligence. He is lead author of the Wellards NHS Annual Review (2009-10 & 2010-11 editions).

He launched and edited Commissioning Health, in association with BUPA Commissioning and NHS Alliance. This ran 2007-8, with articles from Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt; DH commissioning director Mark Britnell; SHA CEs Mike Farrar and Ian Carruthers; NHS Alliance CE Michael Sobanja; policy experts Richard Lewis and Jennifer Dixon; and health economist Alan Maynard.

Andy edited the UK’s leading healthcare management monthly magazine, British Journal of Healthcare Management 2000-8. He correctly predicted the resignation of NHS chief executive Sir Nigel Crisp on the front cover and in the editorial of the March 2006 edition. Andy also published deputy CMO Professor Aidan Halligan’s comment that “any suggestion of real reform has been a deceit: working practices, patterns and customs are at the heart of many capacity issues, and have never been challenged”. He also edited Health Director from 2003-4 (and Continence UK in 2009; don’t ask).

His journalism regularly appears in Health Service Journal, The Guardian Public Management, and Health Management, and was the ‘NHS Watch’ columnist of Pharma Times 2006-9.

Andy also works as a conference reporter, report author and editor; and has presented on policy and communication issues to NHS conferences and training events. He has also appeared on various national broadcast media outlets as an NHS pundit.

NHS ACE Editorial Board
Full biographical details for all board members will follow here shortly

Julie Wood, Director, Clinical Commissioning Federation, NHS Alliance

Dr David Jenner, GP, Cullompton, senior policy adviser, NHS Alliance

Dr Shane Gordon, GP & clinical commissioning lead, NHS East of England, and chief executive of the North East Essex GP commissioning group; national co-lead, Clinical Commissioning Federation, NHS Alliance

Tim Riley, chief executive, NHS Tameside and Glossop PCT

Richard Alsop, Director Strategy & System Management, NHS Northamptonshire PCT, is responsible for developing long term strategy, and was responsible for shaping the market development strategy for Northamptonshire. Richard leads the commissioning of urgent care services, primary care services, mental health services, learning disability services and individual packages of care for NHS Northamptonshire. Richard championed the development of practice based commissioning in Northamptonshire, leading to large-scale PBC change initiatives such as the Northamptonshire Integrated Care Partnership. Previously he was a Director of Service Improvement and Performance in Northamptonshire Heartlands PCT, and prior to that was a PCG Chief Executive. Richard has an MBA specialising in health services management. Outside of work, Richard enjoys sport, and is a supporter of Northampton Town & Liverpool Football Clubs.

Caroline Kerby, Brent Teaching PCT; Director, Practice Managers’ Federation, NHS Alliance

Dr Niti Pall, GP, chair and clinical lead, Pathfinder Healthcare Developments