Another funding storm is on the horizon with the recently announced rise in national practice contract funding for England. For all the people working in general practice, a rise is a rise, but when it amounts to about 2% in the context of an overstretched service, in which some doctors working in other parts of…

Stress Awareness Month has been running since 1992, each year with a different theme. This year the theme is ‘little by little’, based on the concept that our overall wellbeing can be transformed with small, consistent, positive actions. The Stress Management Society[1]  “…want to emphasise how even the smallest steps taken each day towards self-care…

The  eagerly long-awaited GP Contract letter 2024/25 has been published. I’d like to say that I was shocked, except I’m not. I don’t think I should be surprised really. The negotiations with the consultants and junior doctors have been the first clue to what was waiting around the corner. The 1.9% teaser headline a few…

The introduction of multidisciplinary teams (MDTs) in general practice was driven by the changing healthcare landscape, the need for more comprehensive and patient-centred care, and the desire to improve coordination and efficiency in healthcare delivery. In short, MDTs represent a strategic response to the challenges posed by complex health conditions and aim to enhance the…

It’s that time of year again, when we start chasing those elusive last points – calling patients who haven’t responded to invitations or exploring exception reporting as a last resort. To help you along with achieving your maximum potential, here’s a useful little A-Z. A – Administration: Having a robust call and recall process creates…

I had an inkling that the contract letter would be a bit contentious, given the protracted and somewhat painful mutterings of the BMA GP committee, but when I read it last night I was speechless. This is the second year a contract has been imposed on us without agreement. We’re in the final year of…

The awful news of the death of a GP, Dr Gail Milligan, has hit us really hard. Many of us had never heard of Dr Milligan before her death, but now her name is on all our minds. The sad state of the NHS is such that we are all broken. We often hear about…