title: Primary care groups. The cultivated commissioner.
abstract: The government's proposals for primary care groups assume GPs will be able to direct commissioning organisations more successfully than their fundholder predecessors. Under the previous system, practices incapable of managing a budget and purchasing health services were, in effect, ruled out of fundholding. Guidelines are needed specifying the skills and expertise required for membership of PCGs.
authors.affiliation: Birmingham University.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Baines
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Couper
mesh_terms: D002017:Budgets; D003284:Contract Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D008330:Management Audit; D008486:Physician Executives; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration*; D011361:Professional Competence; D013222:State Medicine / Q000191:economics / Q000458:organization & administration; D006113:United Kingdom