Over the last couple of years, the spotlight has increasingly been shone on the UK Home Healthcare sector – largely due to a combination of circumstances that have both raised awareness and interest in this growing sector.
One of the recent key milestones was the Department of Health-sponsored Homecare Medicines review, published in December 2011, which was in many ways a watershed moment in the management and adoption of home healthcare – with a number of the market issues highlighted and recommendations made within it.
This summer sees the long-awaited outputs of the Homecare Medicine Review implementation workgroups – set up in the wake of the 2011 report and tasked with developing practical guidance and guidelines as to how these services are implemented across the NHS.
This, combined with increasing and continuing pressure on healthcare budgets, a rapid growth of new products where homecare is the optimum channel and increasing demand for added value services from both pharma and NHS stakeholders – mean that home healthcare is in a position where it can deliver real healthcare solutions, across the patient pathway.
This October sees the third annual conference of the National Clinical Homecare Association (NCHA) – the industry body representing companies providing clinical homecare services to patients, and sees recognition of the key role that it can play in the broader context of Out of Hospital care.
As a testament to this, the conference programme reflects and represents a broader base of stakeholders and a real emphasis on showcasing innovation and collaboration in service provision.
The conference will explore a number of key issues facing home healthcare stakeholders, including;
- The outputs of the Homecare Medicines Review implementation workstreams and impact on its stakeholders. The author of the review, Mark Hackett, will present on the findings of the working parties set up to tackle the practicalities of homecare use – covering areas such as standards and guidelines, patient engagement and procurement. These outputs are expected to shape the future development and growth of the sector.
- The changes to the commissioning landscape and how NHS England and Clinical Commissioning Groups are expected to approach the purchasing and provision of home healthcare services. Jacqui Lyttle, Commissioning advisor at Barking & Dagenham CCG will explore how Home healthcare can help both CCG’s and NHS trusts achieve some of their QIPP challenges together with commissioning and service provision priorities.
- The need to demonstrate the outcomes delivered via home healthcare and its alignment with the NHS Outcomes framework is an extremely topical issue. This will be explored and examined by Saffron Cordery, Director of Policy & Strategy at Foundation Trust Network – with expert opinion on the challenges facing the NHS of measuring and demonstrating improved outcomes, how newer models of care provision e.g. homecare, can play a part in supporting this challenge, the expected issues and opportunities that will faced by providers and also practical suggestions as to how traction can be gained at a Foundation Trust level.
The NCHA Annual Conference takes place at the ICC Birmingham on October 17, 2013 and looks set to provide a valuable forum for stakeholders across Out of Hospital Care to witness and understand where home healthcare is heading and how it can deliver added value to the NHS, Pharma and of course the patient.
- There is more information online about the 2013 NCHA Conference and how to register as a delegate