Toolkit for commissioning targeted preventative services
Toolkit | July 2010
This toolkit was developed by the Institute of Public Care to help commissioners of adult social care and health services in the South West of England target prevention and early intervention services more effectively, given the prospect of severely limited resources and a significant projected rise in the region`s population of older people. With reduced expenditure per head therefore available, the toolkit aims to help local authorities assess existing services, identify shortcomings, and contribute to the development of new, more effective preventative services. There is a particular focus on identifying individuals likely to come to rely on high-intensity, high-cost services while they are still divertible from that path.
The toolkit first sets out the national policy context, before guiding commissioners through the process of building an evidence base on existing approaches and best practice in preventative services, developing a business case for a new intervention in their locality, and understanding and presenting the cost benefits of the proposed service.
Emphasising the importance of thoroughly mapping existing local provision, the toolkit next demonstrates how to categorise current services according to the population they serve, ranging from universal provision to those services expected only to delay high-intensity care, before suggesting ways in which provision can be better targeted - especially identifying which groups to target and where in the care pathway intervention are likely to prove most effective.
A final section addresses improving the timeliness of access to services, and sets out principles for effective service monitoring, based on four clear, measurable criteria.
For further information please contact Nic Rattle.