The cervical screening programme has been hit by new problems in the administration of GP practice services, it has been announced. A small number of women – 16 – have failed to receive invitations to screening on time, administrators Capita said. The latest problems led the British Medical Association to renew calls for Capita to

You don’t need to be told that the healthcare sector is facing a staffing crisis. Across most job roles, leavers are outnumbering joiners – and those that do remain seem to be struggling with morale. Staff morale is a hot topic – and a problem – for Practice Managers. On the one hand, given the

Following the recent completion of their latest round of telephone-based CQC inspections, a pair of practice managers have kindly shared their top findings and handy hints to help other PMs better prepare for the ordeal. Grab a hot drink (or something stronger), settle down and buckle up… Be prepared. You have the questions in advance,

Homeless people face casual neglect, discrimination, and inadequate resources when it comes to accessing NHS care, according to a new analysis. In the first study of its kind, research carried out by the University of Birmingham, England, has found that homeless people encounter huge barriers when registering with a general practice, getting an appointment with

Patient satisfaction levels with GP practices slipped slightly last year while problems in getting appointments increased significantly, according to the findings of a major survey. GP leaders said primary care teams had made “incredible efforts” to maintain standards of care in the face of growing demands. The English national GP Patient Survey found that 82.9%

As we’ve written about in detail before on the Practice Index Blog, few things cause practice managers more concerns than staffing – especially the cost of it. It’s no surprise either, given the size of a practice’s wage bill. A recent question posed on the Practice Index Forum brought the topic to the fore –

The Amazon voice-activated device Alexa is to be recruited to provide health advice to those who cannot use the internet, it was announced today. It is the latest technological solution to be promoted by health secretary Matt Hancock, who said: “Technology like this is a great example of how people can access reliable, world-leading NHS