Commissioning Approach

PLAN

• Our Needs Assessment forms the basis for commissioning plans and will be based on the health needs of the Northern Sydney population as identified from the undertaking of a regional needs assessment.

• Stakeholder engagement is an important part of successful commissioning. SNHN will work with patients, providers and the wider community to define problems, gaps and identify appropriate solutions. SNHN will engage both their Clinical and Community Councils along with the wider community.

• Service co-design – SNHN will work with patients, carers, service providers and wider stakeholders to co-design services. This approach is supported by evidence which shows that involving patients and the public in the planning, design and delivery of health and social care services leads to more coordinated and efficient services. Engagement with stakeholders extends beyond the planning stage and will be included at all stages of commissioning.

DELIVER

• Co-delivery is building positive stakeholder relationships and co-designing services for implementation. Additionally, it is undertaking procurement processes as required, exploring and securing solutions by buying services to address the needs jointly identified during the planning process.

• Build capacity – SNHN will invest in the capacity and capability of staff to enable them to undertake activities required of a commissioning organisation and achieve organisational excellence. Capacity building of providers in the potential market may also be required before any formal procurement process is undertaken.

• Support for wider stakeholder groups throughout the design and implementation of any new service change. This will include market stimulation and development which in turn will drive quality. SNHN will also promote collaboration between providers.

MONITOR

• Informatics: Will support the development of robust performance frameworks against which to measure performance of commissioned services and the system as a whole.

• Promote quality: By adopting an outcomes based approach to commissioning, which will develop over time as internal and external capacity and capability increases. Quality standards will be built into provider contracts.

• Drive improvements: Using active management of contracts and services as a basis for planning future service transformation. Exploring new service models and encouraging providers to adopt innovative approaches to achieving outcomes.

REVIEW

• Outcomes will be used as the basis of measuring performance of commissioned services.

• Impact on health outcomes at the population level will determine the success of programs and revised areas of focus for future planning.
• Inform Re-design – impact on outcomes will inform service redesign. Commissioning is a cyclical process with regular reviews and lessons learnt to inform next steps and no stage being an end point. All stages provide valuable information on areas of need and further development.