EXCLUSIVE

A clinical commissioning group’s (CCG) lack of interest in an atrial fibrillation pilot shows that local commissioning is “not working”, according to Alliance Healthcare chairman Mike Smith.

Dartford, Gravesham and Swanley CCG had “turned their back” on an atrial fibrillation scanning initiative – funded by Alliance Healthcare’s independent support group Alphega – that ran across six Kent pharmacies until January, Mr Smith told C+D.

Speaking at the Alphega conference earlier this month, Mr Smith said it was “totally unacceptable” that the CCG had not supported the four-month collaboration with local pharmacy group Salveo Health, despite it resulting in the diagnosis of six patients with heart conditions.

Responding to Mr Smith’s comments, the CCG said it commissioned services that were able to manage patients “in the best way possible” once they were identified as being at high risk of developing a condition.

“As a CCG, our duty is to commission integrated services that meet the needs of our whole population and improve the outcomes of all the people we serve,” it told C+D on Tuesday May 19).

More than 600 patients screened

Alphega said that more than 600 patients were screened during the pilot, which ran between October 2014 and January 2015. Nine patients were referred to their GP, including five who were diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and one with Torsades de Pointes, according to an analysis by the independent support network.

Pharmacists taking part in the project also identified 110 patients with high blood pressure and delivered 418 lifestyle interventions for smoking, weight or alcohol, Alphega added.

Mr Smith said atrial fibrillation affected an “enormous amount of people” and local commissioners needed to “put their money where their mouth is” and fund pharmacy services. The government also needed to show that it was “serious” about commissioning services at a local level or “stop talking about it”, he added.

Salveo Health director Sunil Kochhar told the conference that the CCG had “seemed reluctant to take any interest in the pilot” even though the costs of the trial were covered by Salveo and Alphega. The two organisations had tried “many different avenues” to secure funding to continue the service and they were “not giving up”, Mr Kochhar stressed.

“We have shown the CCG that we can deliver new services that are beneficial to patients. We just need to find a way of overcoming the many obstacles that seem to stand in the way of getting local funding,” he added.

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