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Case Study | Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group

Posted on May 2022

Person in white coats writing notes

​Safeguarding statutory responsibilities with a dedicated and experienced project team to clear a backlog of CHC reviews.

​Mid and South Essex Clinical Commissioning Groups had a time limit to complete 1,000 adult CHC reviews and 15 CYP reviews. Experienced support was required to manage the entirety of this project
Priorities supported:
  • An experienced supplier to take responsibility for the successful outcome of this project

  • Supply of a skilled Programme Manager to lead the projects management and maintain the pre-agreed quality standards

  • Transparent reporting and clear KPIs to ensure total visibility to the CCG

  • Project team assembled of

    o Programme Lead

    o 10 Nurse Assessors

    o Specialist Paediatric Nurse

    o Quality Assurance Lead

    o 4 Support Administrators

    o MCA Consultant

  • A specialist recruitment consultancy able to mitigate the risk of skill shortages and absence

Experience applied:
  • Drawing on our 20 years of NHS recruitment knowledge, we reviewed the entire project and created a planned timeline from recruitment to completion

  • We targeted a Programme Lead we had previously worked with and who could be relied upon for attention to detail and timely delivery

  • In partnership with our appointed Programme Lead, we scoped out the service and designed a detailed project plan to submit to the CCG

  • The backlog was divided across a 15-week window and KPIs assigned to each assessor. Our Programme Manager and Quality Assurance Lead updated progress daily and met weekly with the CCG

  • Collaborating within their team, five specialist healthcare consultants secured a robust project team shortlist

Outcomes delivered:
  • A Programme Lead was secured with an impeccable track record of service delivery across multiple CCGs

  • Our project plan included scheduled updates on KPIs which triggered invoicing when hit

  • Throughout the project all KPIs and the extended deadline date were met

  • Our project team of qualified and committed candidates ensured full project continuity throughout the delivery phase of the contract even when business as usual staff were deployed to the front line

  • All reviews were completed to a high standard and the backlog was cleared

  • Project was delivered under original budget resulting in savings for the CCG

"It was a joy to work with Mid Essex CCG to deliver the CHC Backlog Project. Despite all of the challenges that COVID-19 response bought, we were able to help the CCG to safeguard its statutory responsibilities for patient safety and ensure that reviews were completed in line with national framework requirements. At all levels, my project team maintained ownership and responded well to clinical and operational oversight, this made it possible to complete a high volume of cases in a small window of time."

Venn Group's Programme Lead

"This project was borne out of necessity, due to significant backlogs accruing during the Covid pandemic. It was also a first attempt for us in engaging an agency team to work externally on a time-limited workplan. Both the Venn Group team and the CCG teams involved learned fast how to best work together, to rapidly resolve issues and to continually monitor progress against a very tight trajectory. The project has delivered on its principal aims, within budget, and in testing out new tools and methodologies, it has added value to our programme of CHC transformation at the same time; an unplanned but highly useful outcome."       

Head of Continuing Healthcare and Children & Young Peoples’ Continuing Care

To discuss your projects and planned recruitment please contact Adam Britton abritton@venngroup.com or Mike Range mrange@venngroup.com