South Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) wish to commission a service for the provision of an initiation, stabilisation, monitoring and dosing ‘One Stop Shop’ anticoagulant therapy service in a community setting for non-complex patients aged 16 and over.  The aim of the service is to ensure patients receive anticoagulation therapy initiation and monitoring promptly, in line with the national service framework for coronary heart disease, and for patients with Atrial Fibrillation (AF) the NICE clinical guideline CG36.  The purpose is to reduce inequalities in access to anticoagulation therapy, improve anticoagulation control in patients and reduce drug-associated complications.

The service will minimise the potential side effects of warfarin by providing patients with regular monitoring to stabilise the International Normalised Ratio (INR) levels while continuing to maximise the effective benefits of such treatment.

The service will have equitable access, ensuring that patients are treated with dignity and respect, are fully informed about their care and are able to make decisions about their care in partnership with healthcare professionals.

The service is to commence from 1st September, 2014 and contracts will be awarded for 2 years to 31st August, 2016.

The North of England Commissioning Support Unit (NECS) and the CCGs intend to hold a provider information event.  This will be an opportunity for potential providers to raise questions/queries about the service and gain an understanding of the procurement process.  The event will be held on Monday 31 March 2014, 12-2pm at the MPH Training and Conference Centre, Unit 2B, Stonehills Shield Road, Gateshead, NE10 0HW.

If you wish to attend the event please register your organisation on the following eSourcing website: https://nhs-neps.bravosolution.co.uk.  Registration on the portal is free and it can be accessed at any time of the day. 

The qualification questionnaire and supporting documents are available to download through BravoSolutions who are the managed service provider for the NECS e-tendering portal. The portal is available at https://nhs-neps.bravosolution.co.uk.  It is free to register on the portal, and it can be accessed at any time of the day.  Should you have any queries or if you are having problems registering on the portal, please contact the BravoSolution dedicated Supplier Helpdesk by calling 0800 368 4850 (Monday to Friday (9.00 am to 6.00 pm) oremailhelp@bravosolution.co.uk.

Supplier instructions on how to apply for this Tender

1.         Register your company on the eSourcing portal (this is only required once) - Browse to the eSourcing Portal: https://nhs-neps.bravosolution.co.uk and click the link to register - Accept the terms and conditions and click 'continue' - Enter your correct business and user details - Note the username you chose and click 'Save' when complete - You will shortly receive an email with your unique password (please keep this secure).

2.         Express an Interest in the tender - Login to the portal with the username/password - Click the 'ITTs Open to All Suppliers' link. (These are Invitations to Tender open to any registered supplier) - Click on the relevant ITT to access the content. - Click the 'Express Interest' button at the top of the page. - This will move the ITT into your 'My ITTs' page. (This is a secure area reserved for your projects only) -You can now access any attachments by clicking 'Buyer Attachments' in the 'ITT Details' box
 
3.         Responding to the tender - Click 'My Response' under 'ITT Details', you can choose to 'Create Response' or to 'Decline to Respond' (please give a reason if declining) - You can now use the 'Messages' function to communicate with the buyer and seek any clarification - Note the deadline for completion, then follow the onscreen instructions to complete the ITT - There may be a mixture of online & offline actions for you to perform (there is detailed online help available) You must then submit your reply using the 'Submit Response' button at the top of the page. If you require any further assistance please consult the online help, or contact the eTendering help desk.

The closing date for submission of Tenders is 12 noon Monday 14 April 2014.

 

Consistent with the national directive to extend patient choice to community services, NHS South of Tyne and Wear and the Gateshead, South Tyneside and Sunderland Clinical Commissioning Groups will be commissioning an Anticoagulation Stabilisation and Monitoring Service for Non-Complex Patients using the Any Qualified Provider (AQP) process during 2012/13.

By choice of Any Qualified Provider they mean that when patients are referred (usually by their GP) for a particular service, they should be able to choose from a list of qualified providers who meet NHS service quality requirements, prices and normal contractual obligations. This approach is already in place for routine elective procedures.

Extending patient choice of provider is intended to empower patients and carers, improve their outcomes and experience, enable service innovation and free up clinicians to drive change and improve practice.

In securing services under the AQP process assurance of competence, quality and safety standards is required. Any provider will be eligible to join the qualified provider list subject to demonstrating competency against specified criteria. Qualified providers will be expected to deliver the service under the NHS Standard Contract for a defined length of time, with payment based on actual provision. Commencement of the service will be 30th September 2012.

The North East Procurement Service will be hosting an Anti-Coagulation Service Market Engagement Event on behalf of NHS South of Tyne and Wear and NHS North of Tyne on:

  30th May, 6pm – 8pm, at The Quadrus Centre, Boldon Colliery, NE35 9PF.
OR
31st May, 6pm – 8pm at Bevan House, Great Park,Newcastle, NE13 9BA.

The aim of the event is to engage with the market in respect of the Any Qualified Provider process and guidance on completion of documentation, with an overview of the service requirement. This is in order to ensure the AQP process and Anti-Coagulation Service and its scope are fully understood prior to the release of the AQP offer.

 To register your interest in attending the Market Engagement Event, please ensure that you register on the eTendering system BravoSolutionshttps://nhs-neps.bravosolution.co.uk and complete and return the Market Engagement Event – Submission of Interest Form and return via the messaging system; no later than 12 noon on the 18th May.