Practices are to receive bonus payments for bringing forward the COVID and flu vaccination programme because of the risks of the new variant virus, it has been announced. NHS England said the programme should begin on 11 September – three weeks earlier than the planned October start. The alarm has been caused by the identification…

Since the COVID-19 vaccine programme commenced, healthcare staff and volunteers have worked tirelessly to administer the vaccine to those patients sitting in the high-priority groups. To date, c18 million people have had their first dose of the vaccine; this equates to one in three adults across the UK. The roll-out continues at pace, and the…

I was really struck when we were recording this month’s episode of the Practice Manager Panel podcast of just how positive an experience the vaccination programme has been so far for general practice.  What is important is that the money flows to practices do not make it all turn sour. The vaccination programme really has…

The first wave of the pandemic significantly reduced public willingness to approach general practitioners about possible cancer symptoms, it has been claimed. A new survey has found that nearly half of those with potential symptoms did not contact their GP during the first wave last year. The findings reinforce concerns that the pandemic has led…

Doctors are facing a wave of complaints coming in from patients who are frustrated about treatment and diagnostic delays during the pandemic, a survey has revealed. The Medical Defence Union (MDU) and GPonline found that two thirds of the 1,203 respondents (67%) to a questionnaire said they feared facing a complaint related to the pandemic.…

The roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccines around the UK has been one glimmer of hope during the deadly pandemic that has dominated everyone’s life for the past year. A record-breaking almost 600,000 vaccines were administered on just one day recently (30 January) across the UK and the number of people receiving one dose keeps rising…

While the approval and subsequent roll-out of vaccines to fight coronavirus have provided much-needed hope for the nation, the actual process of doing this appears to be piling pressure on GP practices while also confusing patients. Several practice managers have reported problems with how the process is unfolding and their practices are continuing to be…