Urgent Treatment Centre - Outsourcing of Services

Description

The Trust are utilising the Most Suitable Provider process under the Provider Selection Regime to invite interest to provide a fully outsourced UTC service provision. Lot 1: North and Mid Hampshire Acute System (Hampshire Hospitals) has three hospitals and two Emergency Departments, currently North Hampshire and Basingstoke Hospital has a dedicated Urgent Treatment Centre which has been operating for 11 months. The Trust are utilising the Most Suitable Provider process under the Provider Selection Regime to invite interest to submit proposals to manage a full UTC service for 12 hours per day for the people of Basingstoke and surrounding areas. As per the national specification this will increase to 24hours a day service for both illness and injury at a time to be agreed between Commissioner and Provider. • The full UTC service would operate from 10.00 until 22.00 each day and this would run 365 days a year. • The provider must operate a booked appointment system. • The current ENP Team (delivering Minor Injury within Basingstoke ED) between 7:30am and 02:00am each day would be based in the UTC service during this whole period providing Minor Injury before the UTC fully opens and after the full UTC closes in the evening. • Outside of the above periods, patients would go to ED as is the case currently. • It will also cover Patients booked by NHS111 requiring urgent face to face Primary Care need who can't be closed on the phone/online or needing a UTC. • Patients booked or conveyed by Ambulance who are fit to sit to a UTC Injury or Illness Service. • Patients booked in by GPs who require Primary Care needs above what is available in the practice. The potential model of delivery could be based on the following potential staff grouping: • 3 x Primary Care Clinicians providing minor illness appointments (with at least one of which being a GP for the full opening hours). • The ENP Service will continue to be provided by the Trust ENPs providing minor injury appointments, however under the right circumstances these could potentially move from HHFT current workforce to the Providers workforce or remain as HHFT Employees. • 1 x Health Care Assistant • 1 x Receptionist • Clinical Management Support Providers expressing interest are also invited to discuss what we are calling "an alternative model of care" that might provide the Trust with additional financial and operational efficiencies. Should providers wish to express interest they should understand that as a minimum they must meet the eleven NHSE UTC Principles and Standards. For information; A 2nd Urgent Treatment Centre at Royal Hampshire County Hospital (Winchester) is in planning and the construction process underway, this facility is expected to open in Autumn 2026. HHFT will be seeking variant proposals from interested providers that extend to include potential services into this facility also. Key principles: • The Trust are looking to procure a managed service for the delivery of an Urgent Care Treatment Centre. • The successful provider will be expected to manage any IR35 issues internally, as stated previously the Trust is procuring a managed service so staff working in the service will not be Trust staff; • The Trust does not seek to accept any annual or other periodic increase linked to NHS Agenda for Change or Doctors and Dentists Review Body increases. The provider is expected to manage this within their own margins. • Providers that intend to apply a "Corporate costs" will be expected to clearly identify what is included and why they believe the Trust should pay such a charge. • Providers intending to appoint a clinical lead who is supernumerary to the clinicians working in the UTC on a daily basis will need to set out a robust justification for this. A full specification of requirements can be provided to interested providers upon request. Assessment of likely providers will begin 14 days after the publication of this Intended Approach Notice, this assessment will undertaken utilising the 5 key criteria for awards of Healthcare Services contracts under the Provider Selection Regime; o Quality and innovation o Value o Integration, collaboration and service sustainability o Improving access, reducing health inequalities and facilitating choice o Social value Additional information: This is a Provider Selection Regime (PSR) intended approach notice. The awarding of this contract is subject to the Health Care Services (Provider Selection Regime) Regulations 2023. For the avoidance of doubt, the provisions of the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 do not apply to this award. The intention is to award a contract using the most suitable provider process. Award decision makers will include a multi-disciplinary team comprising of Trust Unscheduled Care Leads, Programme Management, Finance/Commercial and Executive Leadership. Provider assessment of suppliers expressing interest will begin after 14 days of publication of this notice.