With all the talk of vaccine success, falling case rates and a roadmap to normality, you could be forgiven for thinking the light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel is shining bright. However, for those in primary care, this ‘end’ of the pandemic is likely to usher in another wave of pressures – pent…

Whether you’re new to the role or a seasoned practice manager, the PM role always presents many challenges. However, the relentless demands of the last 12 months have left many of us feeling completely drained. From dealing with shielding team members and ensuring the practice is COVID secure, to now having to manage a vaccination…

Do you find yourself becoming increasingly short-tempered or have you seen members of your team go from being happy and chatty to the person who comes to work, does their job and says nothing? Today’s working environment is significantly different to what it was 12 months ago; little did we know then the significant impact…

There have been many comments recently regarding staff development, particularly about mandatory training, retake periods and who needs to do what training. Well, the ball lies in your court (to a certain extent) as Nigel’s surgery 70 states: “CQC does not have a list of mandatory training for members of the GP practice team”. You…

However positive you try to be, however hard you try to motivate morale across the practice and however hard you work to try and keep patients happy, there’s no escaping the fact that 2020 has been extremely challenging for practice managers. COVID-19 has turned the world on its head, making an already stressful, difficult sector…

A new report offers a framework to support primary care organisations following the death by suicide of a colleague. It was released yesterday (29 September) by the Society of Occupational Medicine, who created it together with the Louise Tebboth Foundation, which supports the mental wellbeing of doctors. The report, ‘Responding to the death by suicide…

Managers are all too aware of the perennial issue of recruitment to ensure that practices have enough employees, but in these changing COVID-19 times, the goalposts on recruitment appear to be changing. A long-standing reliance on expensive locums may be due for a switch, with GPs becoming far more willing to agree to salaried positions…