The old care paradigm is dead, long live the new sustainable care paradigm: how can GP commissioning consortia meet the demand challenges of 21st century healthcare?

There are many challenges facing the health system in the 21st century - the majority of which are related to managing demand for health services. To meet these challenges emerging GP commissioning consortia will need to take a new approach to commissioning health services - an approach that moves beyond the current acute-centred curative paradigm of care to a new sustainable paradigm of care that focuses on primary care, integrated services and upstream prevention to manage demand. A key part of this shift is the recognition that the health system does not operate in a vacuum and that strategic commissioning decisions must take account of wider determinants of health and well-being, and operate within the finite limits of the planet's natural resources. The sustainable development principle of balancing financial, social and environmental considerations is crucial in managing demand for health services and ensuring that the health system is resilient to risks of resource uncertainty and a changing climate. Building sustainability into the governance and contracting processes of GP commissioning consortia will help deliver efficiency savings, impact on system productivity, manage system risk and help manage demand through the health co-benefits of taking a whole systems approach to commissioning decisions. Commissioning services from providers committed to corporate social responsibility and sustainable business practices allows us to move beyond a health system that cures people reactively to one in which the health of individuals and populations is managed proactively through prevention and education. The opportunity to build sustainability principles into the culture of GP commissioning consortia upfront should be seized now to ensure the new model of commissioning endures and is fit for the future.