The Provision of a Community GP Visiting (also known as GP Navigation, Pathfinder and Alternatives to Transfer) Service

NHS Shared Business Services (NHS SBS) on behalf of NHS Stockport Clinical Commissioning Group (the CCG) is seeking expressions of interests from suitably qualified service providers to deliver a high quality GP Visiting Service (also known as GP Navigation Service or Pathfinder Service or Alternative to Transfer Service).

The aims and objectives of the Pathfinder Alternatives to Transfer Service are to ▪ deliver high quality safe clinical service ▪ shift activity from acute settings and into the community ▪ reduce readmissions ▪ reduce emergency ambulance activity. The Pathfinder Tool enables North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) to work with the successful Provider to provide an ‘Alternative to Transfer service”.

The basic principles are that: 1. NWAS Clinician will only refer patients eliciting “amber” or lower outcomes for the GP Visiting Team 2.Referrals will be from a place of safety (home, temporary address, warden controlled/sheltered accommodation, residential homes, EPH’s, nursing homes). 3. Referrals will be made on a clinician to clinician basis. 4. The Provider will undertake a face to face assessment of the patient as identified by the Pathfinder tool within two hours and agree an appropriate management plan with the patient. 5. Referrals must be limited to GP providers ‘authorised and approved’ to operate within the scheme by the ‘safe care closer to home’ board. 6. Service providers will provide evidence of compliance with the governance, audit and monitoring arrangements. 7. Where a referral has been made and the patient is waiting for the GP assessment visit but their condition deteriorates and they request emergency assistance, NWAS will notify the GP Provider Service of the cancelled visit as soon as is practicable.

Hours of operation will be Monday – Sunday 8am-6pm. Patients must be clinically appropriate to be seen by the service as determined by outcomes from application of the pathfinder tool.

The CCG has published this expression of interest to better understand the market and the service provisions available. The relevant tender documentation is expected to be available via the NHS SBS E-Tendering EU-Supply portal (https://nhssbs.eu-supply.com) sometime during July/August 2015.

Providers wishing to express an interest in participating in the Tender Process should do so by, emailing their interest to kathryn_farquhar1@nhs.net by no later than 4pm on Friday, 10th July 2015. Please note that NHS SBS reserves the right to change this date.

Please note that an expression of interest in delivering the GP Visiting Service is not a tender response. An expression of interest is no indication of a commitment to participate in the tender process nor does it infer any special status on those providers who do submit an interest. Providers who do not express an interest at this stage will still be able to apply in the future. All responses will be treated in confidence.