Acton Shapiro has been working with Rotherham Primary Care Trust over the last two years and this has included writing a number of business cases for re-developing health centres as new Health and Customer Service Centres at Maltby, Aston/Swallownest and Rawmarsh.  The work forms part of the PCT’s strategic plans for service development and improvement in order to help deliver better primary and social care services in the area.  For example, the Aston/Swallownest centre will form part of the “hub and spoke” service model, which will eventually include up to seven new, fully integrated developments for the people of Rotherham and the surrounding areas.  We carry out the work for these business cases in stages, including arranging meetings with a broad range of key stakeholders, including all the GP practices who have indicated an interest in moving to the proposed developments, potential service providers, the PCT itself and the council leading the procurement aspects of the development.  We also work with other professional advisers to clarity tenants’ requirements and document and advise on the health planning aspects of the developments.  Other work for the PCT has involved a review of a premises scheme for the Dalton area to see if it still met the needs of the population or whether it should be re-designed.  Other ongoing work includes a comprehensive review of local requirements in the Wath and Rawmarsh areas, including undertaking public involvement via Citizens' Juries and other methods.

We have also undertaken a market testing exercise for making pharmacy services available at the planned new centres in Maltby, Aston/Swallownest and a new facility in the City Centre.  Appropriate service criteria have been developed against which to judge how well we think a number of different community pharmacists will be able to deliver services from the new primary care centres to be built over the next two years.  Pharmacy contractors have now been selected for all three of the schemes, following a rigorous competitive tendering exercise and evaluation.  For further information click here.

Another commission has been for Sapphire Primary Care Developments to write a number of outline business cases to show how new primary care services can be effectively anD efficiently delivered as part of an integrated approach.  This involves showing how traditional GP practices currently deliver services to patients, often from sub-standard premises that are not fit for purpose in the longer term, and how these practices plan to improve services, given the opportunities of the new GP contract arrangements, payment by results, practice-based commissioning and the new public health agenda.  We show how new or replacement primary care buildings can become “one-stop shops”, offering a much broader range of health and care services to patients than existing accommodation, and the benefits that accrue from involving third party developers and other organisations.