A GP ferderation has lost out to Virgin Care for a £17 million a year contract for delivering adult community health services.
NHS Guildford and Waverley CCG announced Virgin Care Services were their preferred provider of the contract to lead the delivery of services across community nursing, therapy services and community hospitals.
The contract which starts April 2017, is worth £176 million across its ten-year lifetime.
Virgin’s bid was chosen following a competitive procurement which included bidders from local GP federation, Procare Health Ltd, Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, and Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust.
The CCG said that Virgin Care Services will work across health and social care to deliver a ‘fully integrated’ service, which delivers care in patient’s homes where possible, with general practice at its heart.
Vicky Stobbart, executive nurse, director of quality and safeguarding, NHS Guildford and Waverley CCG said: ‘The CCG is committed to commissioning high-quality, safe, patient and carer centred services that are compassionate, responsive and needs-led. It is important that we work collaboratively towards achieving improved health and wellbeing for our local population.’
The CCG also announced, today, the launch of an urgent repeat medicines service to free up availability in GP out of hours services.
The CCG estimates 30% of NHS 111 calls on a Saturday are for urgent repeat medication requests.
The new services will allow call handlers to direct patients to a participating community pharmacy where a pharmacist will make an assessment of the patient before issuing an emergency repeat prescription.
The service will be available to patients registered with a local practice out of normal GP opening hours.
