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The POWER of NKF working with its KPAs

K idney Patients will be relieved to know that the Background and previous NKF announcements
(Oct 2015)
campaign fought by NKF together with its KPA
members has been successful in its aim to halt the
Commissioning Dialysis Services
disastrous plan to commission dialysis at Clinical
Commissioning Group (CCG) level rather than
by Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) rather than
Nationally. The threat of Dialysis Services being commissioned
centrally by NHS England has receded. Following a
Following NKF’s announcement (see below) Lord Warner
long and hard-fought battle waged by NKF for over a
convened the Specialised Services Commission in December
2015 to help inform the future development of Specialised year and involving KPAs, NKF is pleased to report that
Services, by drawing on relevant expertise from across the NHS England has now published “Improving value
healthcare sector. That commission has now published its for patients from Specialised Care” – Commissioning
report. The report can be viewed in full by following this link :- intentions 2016/2017 for prescribed Specialised
http://www.shca.info/perch/resources/specialised-services- Services. NKF is relieved to observe that no wholesale
commission-report-final.pdf plans are reported to remove kidney dialysis from the
Specialised Commissioning stable. From NKF’s point
In this report it is clearly stated that Specialised Services are to
of view this is a victory. Even co-commissioning is not
remain Nationally commissioned - as demanded by NKF and
its renal patients. This is a major win for NKF and the KPAs proposed - although there is still some experimentation
who responded to the NKF’s “Call to ACTON”. KPAs sought with collaborative commissioning where dialysis remains
out the opinions of patients and in doing so provided the centrally commissioned but in co-operation with CCGs.
essential evidence that NKF needed in order to then present
It should be noted that NHS England (the central
this to Ministers via the All Party Parliamentary Kidney Group.
commissioners) now splits its work into national, regional
To reverse government intended policy is no small achievement and subregional levels. Changes that will go ahead are
and kidney patients across the UK should be proud of their as follows:-
efforts.
Others will no doubt try to minimise or downplay the effect that
the patients, KPAs and NKF had, or even claim the credit for 1. Renal in London will be collaboratively
this achievement themselves. But the simple fact is that YOU commissioned across the whole care pathway
did this -working as a Federation should - a patient voice loud
enough to be heard. 2. Data is being collected to highlight service variations
in renal dialysis by Public Health England
Not many therapy areas within the health environment are
this well organised - have patient groups (the equivalent to
3. Some renal services will be commissioned via
KPAs) at every hospital, have a national organisation (NKF)
to plan a national strategy and to also then have an All Party evaluation schemes
Parliamentary Group to tackle Government and Ministers.
4. Renal transplant is to have a national tariff
NKF is not opposed to change; much within the NHS is in
need of change and NKF will follow the development of
5. Collaborative commissioning for renal dialysis will
commissioning as outlined in Lord Warner’s report with keen
be proposed where there are links to obesity and
interest. If we feel that any proposals are wrong, we will oppose
diabetes, in an attempt to increase prevention
them. But where they are an improvement on what currently
exists we will support them. It was the wholesale downgrading across the CKD pathway
of dialysis to level three commissioning (ie local level) that had
to be halted. And together we did this. WELL DONE.

Timothy F Statham OBE NKF is very pleased with this, as we seem to have
Chief Executive prevented the downgrading of dialysis from level one
commissioning to level three commissioning. The
NKF
changes that are being proposed make a lot of sense,
Secretariat to the All Party Parliamentary Kidney Group
and as London is a region in its own right (under the
NHS England new tier structure) what is now proposed
is logical.

Kidney Life will continue to report progress on NKF/KPA
challenges to policy where any aspect of the care or
treatment of kidney failure in the UK is affected.
KIDNEY PATIENTS UK

22 Autumn 2016 www.kidney.org.uk HELPLINE 0845 601 02 09