In association with HSJ, we're running a series of five supplements. The first in the series focuses on Commissioning Competency 5.

With its focus on knowledge management and needs assessment, competency 5 underpins all 11 competencies within World Class Commissioning and is the one primary care trusts need to master to deliver high quality services for local people. For some, its emphasis on analytical skills, understanding need and benchmarking will have long been part of their approach to commissioning.

Find out how local organisations are grasping the key to successful world Class Commissioning:

Case study one: Milton Keynes Observatory

Delivering rich information on everything from crime to smoking, right down to ward level, in a model example of joined-up working.

Download the case study (pdf 392KB).

Case study two: Rotheram PCT

Leading the way in understanding precisely where and with whom it should be intervening - and where GP services are falling short.

Download the case study (pdf 410KB).

Case study three: Nottingham City

Tackling problems such as teen pregnancy with creative methods – notably benchmarking against a comparable city, Liverpool.

Download the case study (pdf 422KB).

Case study four: Western Cheshire

Developing a sophisticated understanding of which patients are most at risk, enabling it to act pre-emptively to cut emergency admissions.

Download the case study (pdf 344KB).

Case study five: Bristol

Joining three other PCTs to create an information consortium – giving it access to a team of 25 dedicated data experts, and totally new approaches to analysis.

Download the case study (pdf 476KB).