Our new programme is designed to enable proactive engagement with NHS trusts, in order to help us design and develop the right procurement strategies, and achieve enhanced benefit for the wider NHS.
Facilitated by our Voice of the Customer team, we are looking for customers from across a range of roles and disciplines to join one of our panels. The aim of the panels is to gather key customer knowledge and insight to help shape our future procurement activity.
The overall aim of this programme is to ensure the customer voice is embedded into the implementation and delivery of our category strategies. This will ensure that we will supply products that:
- Are suitable for use.
- Provide value for money.
- Meet the needs of the NHS.
What benefits will trusts get by partaking in Category strategy customer advisory panels?
As well as learning about innovations being added to the new framework, customers will gain:
- Ability to suggest new innovations that may be suitable to be added to the framework, to benefit patient care, care pathways and drive value for the NHS.
- First sight of and input into potential savings levers, to factor into a savings work plan.
- Greater engagement with us across our procurement activity, including visibility of key milestones within the procurement process.
How much time will I need to commit?
Requirements on your time and commitment may vary, dependant on the framework type and category area. There will be flexibility in the different types of engagement, and how we collate your feedback:
- Microsoft Teams meetings
- Live polls
- Questionnaires
- Email communications.
The decision was made to open up the engagement into category strategy, moving away from a sole responsible trust (Lead Reference Trust) to ensure we are capturing input from a wider scope of customers to support a strategy aligned to customer needs.
There will be opportunity to review and provide feedback on the current framework prior to us going out to tender for the category area. Updates will be provided post procurement activity, as well as seeking your feedback on the initial outcomes of the tender.
Once procurement activity is concluded, customers will be provided with details of the outcome via contract launch communications (available six weeks prior to the framework / contract start date).
Schedule of Category Strategy Customer Advisory Panel Meetings
As a priority, we are currently looking for expertise to join our panels in April in the product area of Cleaning Supplies – Chlorine Tablets NCP programme.
| Product Area | Scope of Meeting / Requirement | Roles Required | First Panel | Second Panel | Framework Start Date |
| Total Cardiology and Radiology Solution | Topics for discussion would include:
|
Consultant Cardiologist – Interventional Cardiology, Consultant Cardiologist – Interventional and Structural Cardiology, Consultant Cardiologist – Cardiac Rhythm Management, Consultant Cardiologist – Electrophysiologist, Consultant, Cardiologist – Heart Failure, Consultant Cardiologist – Imaging, Consultant Paediatric Cardiologist, Lead Cardiac Physiologist, Superintendent Radiographer, Superintendent Cardiac Radiographer, Consultant Interventional Neuroradiologist Consultant Interventional Radiologist, Consultant Stroke Physician, Lead Perfusionist, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon, Consultant Thoracic Surgeon, Consultant Congenital cardiac surgeon, Vascular Surgeon | April 2025 | TBC | February 2027 |
| Facilities and Office Solutions: Cleaning Supplies Equipment Working Group Chlorine Tablets (NCP programme) |
To help develop a strategy to procure Chlorine tablets for all trusts through the National Contracted Product (NCP) programme. This is to assure supply and support trusts with reducing the cost of the product. We need to understand the requirements of customers, what potential implications there may be to standardising as part of an NCP, as well as support in defining a product specification and any testing requirements to ensuring product efficacy. |
|
Thursday 3 April 2 – 2:45pm | TBC | TBC |
| Diagnostic Equipment and Services: Managed Equipment and Clinical Service Solutions (framework renewal) Covering:
|
Key Objectives: To understand if there are any improvements required, support that can be provided, opportunities to consider for the framework renewal from a customer perspective. |
|
Tuesday 11 February 2025 11 – 11.45am | TBC | February 2026 |
| Medical and Surgical Consumables: Polymer Products 2022 (framework renewal) Covering:
|
Topics for discussion would include:
|
|
February 2025 | TBC | October 2026 |
* Information for Clinical Choice (ICC) has been developed to assist clinicians in the decision-making process when assessing the suitability of a product by providing a clear illustration and description of the features of a range of similar products supplied through NHS Supply Chain.
See our Useful Links section to learn more about Information for Clinical Choice.
Guidance notes
If you would like to join one of our category strategy customer advisory panels please use our registration form.
For any other future category strategies that are not specified here, or for general queries about the programme, please contact us.
Voice of the Customer (VoC) Team
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