Feature / Technical round-up

CQUIN guidance – budgeting – premises – cross-border care

• Guidance has been issued on the commissioning for quality and innovation (CQUIN) friends and family test indicator for 2013/14. NHS England said the original wording on payments for response rates (part two of the indicator) could be misinterpreted. The part two CQUIN should be split into two payments – the first for providers that achieved at least a 15% response rate in quarter one. The second would be based on providers’ quarter four response rate and would be available to all, including those that failed to meet the Q1 target.

   

• The final version of the programme budgeting guidance for 2012/13 has been posted on the NHS finance manual website. The guidance outlines the requirements for data collection and the responsibilities of the staff involved.

   

• The Department of Health has issued revised guidance on the NHS premises assurance model (PAM). NHS PAM is a tool used by clinical leaders and directors of finance and estates to evaluate the performance of premises and to drive improvements. Commissioners and regulators also use the data generated.

   

• NHS England has set out new information for commissioners of European cross-border healthcare. The document outlines the roles and responsibilities of NHS England, clinical commissioning groups and clinical support units. It also summarises the European Union directive on cross-border healthcare, which becomes UK law in October, and financial flows under the directive.

   

• The Department of Health will allow one-off direct payments for healthcare to be paid into personal bank accounts. However, in its response to the consultation on personal health budget payments, the Department said it does not believe that the time is right to pay family members to manage direct payments for large or complex care packages.

   

• Northern Ireland's Department of Health, Social Care and Public Safety has issued details of charges for GPs and community pharmacists who work from health and social care trust-owned premises. A circular added that the longer-term aim is to establish formal lease agreements with GPs in trusts’ premises and to move to charging for actual costs where this is possible.

   

• A QuickR finance working papers site has been set up to assist in the exchange of finance working papers between primary care trust and strategic health authority legacy teams and receiver organisations. QuickR will be available until 30 September 2013 only.