Provider Assessment and Market Management Solution (PAMMS) briefing and update
Further to previous communications regarding PAMMS, South West Councils have produced a useful briefing document and update for sharing with you. This can be found below.
A total of 13 Local Authorities across the South West region, have agreed to implement a Provider Assessment and Market Management Solution (PAMMS), supported by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (South West ADASS).
The PAMMS tool was co-produced with care providers when the South East regional Local Authorities came together to produce a tool that would enable them to consistently measure quality, spend and activity within commissioned services. It is now recognised nationally as a good practice tool, used by three regions and 50 local authorities.
While PAMMS is a new digital system for the Region, each Local Authority already undertakes a wide range of Quality Assurance activities and contract management approaches with our care providers.
What we are trying to achieve through PAMMS is greater regional consistency of approach so that we can fulfil our statutory duties for safe commissioning and market assurance in a way that is not arduous for all regulated and unregulated providers and can be managed within available resources to achieve better outcomes for the people who receive Social Care.
Anticipated benefits regionally and locally:
Reduces multiple QA assessments & action plans
Increased capacity within the QA team, allowing the team to focus on care quality and Service Improvement
Self-Assessment functionality included – allowing Localities to manage quality and risks remotely
Reduce the impacts of provider failure
Quality Assure all regulated and non-regulated services
Demonstrates the impact of interventions by the Local Authority
Share care market quality with CQC leads
Supports local, sub-regional, regional & national collaboration
Assessment
The PAMMS assessment consists of a series of questions over several domains and quality standards that forms a risk-based scoring system to ensure equality of approach and evidence. The PAMMS key assessment areas are
Assessment, Care Planning & Reviews
Service User’s Experience
Care Worker Knowledge & Understanding
Staff Training & Recruitment
Environment, Equipment & General Safety
Leadership, Quality Assurance & Management
Local Authority Contacts for participating Authorities
If you require more information about PAMMS and its implementation within your local authority area, please contact:
Bournmouth, Christchurch nad Poole Council – provider.engagement@bcpcouncil.gov.uk
Bristol City Council –adultcommissioning@bristol.gov.uk
Cornwall Council – ASCQualityAssurance@Cornwall.gov.uk
Devon County Council- Providerassessmentmarketmanagement-mailbox@devon.gov.uk
Dorset Council – Mary.Coward@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk
Gloucestershire County C0uncil – disabilityquality@gloucestershire.gov.uk
North Somerset Council – QualityMonitoring.AdultServices@n-somerset.gov.uk
Somerset Council – ASCContractsandqualitymonitoring@somerset.gov.uk
South Gloucestershire Council – cahqualityassurance@southglos.gov.uk – community-based support or sgccarehomecommunication@southglos.gov.uk – care homes
Torbay Council – commissioning@torbay.gov.uk
Wiltshire Council – tanya.andrews@wiltshire.gov.uk;
Current Status:
A regional PAMMS Project Group meets weekly, every Friday, and is benefitting from the input, insights and contributions from Care Provider representatives as part of ongoing implementation plans and approaches.
The group jointly agreed that piloting activity was necessary to test and understand the new digital solution Local Authorities will adopt as part of undertaking routine quality assurance and contract management approaches with local care providers, and to seek willing provider volunteers to inform this activity.
Care providers’ experience of the new system is vital in helping us determine how effectively PAMMS works in practice and will inform future roll out plans within LA areas and across the wider region in 2023/24. The pilot phase is equally valuable in supporting and understanding the experience of internal LA staff involved in quality assurance activity as they too adjust to using a new recording and monitoring system.
The regional group has developed shared feedback surveys for those LA staff and care providers directly involved in the pilots and will be analysing the results and emerging learning through the regional group over the coming months.
Piloting work has recently commenced across a number of LA areas as part of supporting and informing wider regional learning.