Our experience

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The Network Group (TNG) our experience supporting Integrated Care System development at system, place and neighbourhood level

TNG was developed for the specific purpose of supporting the development of integrated care, working with Integrated Care Systems, Primary Care Networks and Provider Collaboratives. In particular:

  • The structure of TNG has been designed to reflect ICSs, PCNs and Provider Collaboratives
  • TNG has specialisms across the full range of development needs for emerging ICSs and PCNs.

We have capability and experience of working at multiple levels, including:

  • Neighbourhoods, working with local authorities and primary care organisations we offer the potential to implement neighbourhood interventions as a step to delivering local system-level outcomes and targets
  • Place level, exploring the impactability of Population Health Management (PHM) interventions, and the reshaping of care markets
  • System level to advise ICSs on analytics.

We are involved in a range of national programmes in areas such as Clinical Utilisation Review (CUR), GIRFT, Making Time in General Practice and the New Care Models Programme.

See sections below for more information on our breadth of experience and working methods

  • We have provided strategic advice for the integration of services across health and social care, working with a large US integrator and a first wave ICS pilot
  • We worked collaboratively with the ICS and US integrator to design a new person-centred model of care
  • In terms of PCN support, we worked with a range of GP Federations in the North West to create a standardised town-based approach for chronic disease management pathways, including prevention and self-care
  • For ICPs, we advised on the establishment of integrated care services in Southwark, (where we have also been working on the redesign of GP services), West London and Wiltshire
  • We have also advised on alliance contracting in Croydon and supported an emergent London Integrated Care Provider to co-create a new model of integrated care and establish a joint venture and governance arrangements.

  • We supported the Gloucestershire ICS to design and implement a new operating model for parts of their Intermediate Care Services enabling people to live independently for longer
  • We advised on major health system reconfigurations in Gloucestershire, Somerset and Cheshire & the Wirral, and have supported the review, development of a business case and reconfiguration of maternity and A&E services in Outer North East London
  • Our communications specialists advised NHS England and NHSX on the co-design of services, with a focus on discovering how digital can support access to and delivery of the six domains of personalised care.

  • We deliver an evidence-based methodology encompassing bespoke diagnostic tools tailored to the needs of clients, and provide support for system organisational development models
  • We have extensive experience and expertise in governance, payment and contract reform, including advising on contract and governance issues for Manchester CCG for the establishment of the Manchester LCO, and Hillingdon CCG for the development and procurement of the Hillingdon Integrated Care Partnership.

  • We supported Staffordshire CCGs to deliver an innovative trial to use behavioural economics techniques within a number of large GP practices to address the issues of co-dependent demand
  • We provided clinical leadership and network development to the East Kent Care Economy
  • We embed PHM approaches utilising our PMO support specialists and have delivered over 400 projects across the health and social care and wider public sector
  • We provide PHM initiatives to upskill teams of health professionals in the use of data, including for Primary Care Demand Management and Capacity Planning, for example with GP consortia in BNSSG
  • Our report, ‘Making time in General Practice’ for NHSE was used to underpin the work of the GP Forward View
  • Our team have also supported national programmes such as 100,000 Genomes, New Care Models Programme and NHS 111, as well as working with NHSE & NHSX on digital solutions for personalised care.

TNG has delivered demonstrable outcomes and benefits from many of its work programmes that have had a measurable impact in the health and social care sector. For example:

  • NHSE/I Clinical Utilisation Review programme: At the commencement of CUR in 2016/17 we reported 128,826 CUR assessments with a non-qualified rate of over 41%. As at Q4 2019/20 over 3.1m CUR assessments have been undertaken and we can now demonstrate a significant reduction (28% or 2.8 in 10 bed days) of non-qualified bed-days across providers since the national CUR programme commenced, resulting in over £15m of commissioner savings and potential provider savings of over £50m
  • Early results from our work in Staffordshire has seen increased utilisation of available capacity in practices, reduced DNAs and increased use of alternative appointment types
  • Our analytics specialist’s work with the NHS GIRFT programme has contributed to recognised savings of £143m per annum across approximately 35% of the programme’s remit
  • TNG specialists Caja and Bevan Brittan have been supporting the Gloucestershire ICS to design and implement a new operating model for significant elements of their Intermediate Care Services. Both a Council and NHS contact can be provided for references if required.

TNG’s ‘methodology’ is built on a locally tailored approach, and we recognise that each system is at a different stage of its journey towards integration and therefore has different driving forces for change. We offer practical, implementable solutions designed to fit the diaries of busy senior leaders, tailored to each ICS. This could include Action Learning Sets based on locality conditions and aligned to our six step approach, downloadable Master Classes on some of the key enablers needed to create change, Facilitated Group Sessions on some of the key integration decisions that need to be made, and Individual Coaching Sessions.

Our specialists in healthcare communications offer bespoke support applying the following principles:

  • We convene leaders to develop partnerships, inform decisions, target cohorts and places through opportunity assessments, act early through structured collaboration, repeat with additional cohorts and recognise that people are the key to success.

  • We use tried-and-tested methodologies that identify, involve and engage stakeholders by rapidly convening them in an approach that invests time mapping and identifying stakeholder groupings, both at an organisational and individual level, producing tailored communication and engagement plans
  • We offer specialist experience in bringing widely disparate groups and individuals together to engage meaningfully, with recent examples being Bradford Council, NHSE, NHSX and Guys & St Thomas’
  • Our bespoke methodology, ‘Socialnomics’, combines design thinking and engagement best practice through a five-stage process, building buy-in throughout, agreeing common definitions and taxonomy for integration
  • We work with our clients to facilitate validated informed decisions and targeting, drawing on our experienced team of experts, ensuring the validity of such decisions is not the cause of any dispute.

  • Our specialists in healthcare communications have a strong track record in supporting the NHS and other healthcare organisations with transformation programmes involving differing degrees of service change, including major reconfigurations that require informal and formal public consultation
  • Our design thinking and engagement specialists have expertise in end-to-end service and product design
  • We can offer extensive expertise in qualitative and quantitative research techniques, data analysis and visualization and co-production of service solutions and recommendation with multi-disciplinary teams.