ABSTRACT
A key task for a total purchasing project is to set up a body to make purchasing or commissioning decisions. This will be easiest in a single practice, where the partners and fund manager, together with one or more representatives from the health authority, will probably be the purchasing forum. The purchasing forum needs to develop a purchasing plan, which should take into account all national and regional priorities, as well as being coordinated with the health authority's local strategic plans. Total purchasing GPs will need to be fully aware of their health authority's strategic plans as they should generally be working within the same strategic framework, particularly where the plans have been drawn up with GP involvement. The first contracting task for the total purchasing pilot will be to determine the current price structures being used by their preferred providers, and to decide whether this structure will be sufficiently sensitive to allow the project to achieve its objectives.
