What are Capabilities?
The requirements to deliver General Practice Solutions are grouped into Capabilities. Each Capability describes a business need at the highest level. For example, 'Recording Consultations' describes the need for General Practice staff to be able to make a digital record of any consultation with a patient. The introduction of Capabilities for GP IT is intended to allow suppliers to innovate by being less prescriptive and to segment the requirements in a way to allow more flexibility and choice for buyers.
Capabilities will be used by:
- NHS Digital to express the business needs during the procurement
- NHS Digital for the initial assessment of Solutions for onboarding to the Buying Catalogue
- Suppliers to categorise their products and to see market opportunities
- Buyers to search for products that meet their needs on the Buying Catalogue
What are Standards?
Standards describe the technical or operating conditions required to achieve Catalogue Compliance.
Standards will be used by:
- NHS Digital to express the business needs at the most granular level when needed
- Suppliers to understand what is expected of them in order to be compliant and to onboard onto the Buying Catalogue
- NHS Digital Solution Assurance to assess Supplier Solutions against in order to award compliance
- Buyers to assess various Suppliers against each other (levels of compliance / functionality) for competitive procurements.
Capabilities and Standards Model
Interactive Capabilities and Standards Map
For an Interactive Capability and Standards Map showing all connections between the GP IT Futures Capabilities and Standards, click here.
Does a supplier have to provide a solution that delivers all Capabilities?
Suppliers do not have to provide a Solution that delivers all Capabilities and are free to design and build Solutions that meet one or more of the Capabilities. By looking at the Capabilities, Suppliers can see where their product portfolio fits, either by making tweaks to existing Solutions where required or building new Solutions to expand the Capabilities that they provide for. For example, Supplier 'A' may build a Solution that delivers 'Document Management', 'Custom Workflows' and 'Patient Information Maintenance - GP' Capabilities, whereas Supplier 'B' may choose to build a Solution that delivers all the Citizen Capabilities.
A set of Foundation Capabilities have been identified which will be the access point for GMS funding. These are a subset of the wider set of Capabilities mandated in the NHS England GP IT Operating Model. The Foundation Capabilities are clearly identified on the Capabilities and Standards Model. Suppliers do not have to supply any of the Foundation Capabilities and can choose to provide one or more. Buyers will have to take all of the Foundation Capabilities in order to access central funding.
How is a Capability Structured?
How will buyers know which Capabilities a solution delivers?
Supplier Solutions will be assessed against Capabilities, and assured against all associated Standards, that their Solutions deliver. Once assured this will be visible to buyers on the Buying Catalogue from where it can be purchased.
How does Reporting fit into the new model?
A new Reporting model has been introduced to ensure individual reporting requirements are delivered by the most appropriate Suppliers/Solutions and to allow for the inclusion of specialist reporting Solutions through the introduction of a new Reporting Capability.
Who do I contact for any queries with Capabilities/Standards?
For queries please contact us at gpitfutures@nhs.net