Health Secretary orders funding switch to primary care As one of the first actions of the new Government, the NHS has been ordered to increase the share of funding spent on primary care. The new Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, revealed his intentions after visiting the Abbey Medical Centre in St John’s Wood, London on Monday.…

Access to general practice has been a hot topic recently, with political parties vying to promise more appointments and enhanced GP availability. Amidst this debate, NHS England has published a timely guide to help GP teams better understand, manage and align demand with capacity in their practices. How to align capacity with demand in general…

Practices urged to take control of Connect data The BMA has issued advice in an effort to forestall measures that, it fears, would lead to practices losing their control of data in GP Connect. According to the advice, practices should now use the system to prevent third parties from adding codes to patient records. The…

GP survey reveals recruitment concerns According to two major surveys, qualified GPs are struggling to find work, both as locums and as salaried doctors. The Royal College of GPs reported that 61% of GPs who have sought work this year say they have “struggled”, with 72% of newly qualified GPs reporting this problem. Meanwhile the…

As we head towards the second half of the year, the Practice Index Ultimate Social Media Planner 2024 (July – December) has been updated for 2024 to help you plan your practice communications. We’ve tried to collate all the relevant dates for healthcare and related areas, to keep your social media relevant and engaging! Download…

London drive to improve practice safety Practices in London have received a wide-ranging package of support to help them tackle threats to safety. The resources, from the Londonwide Local Medical Committees, deal with threats to the safety of staff and risks to patient safety from overworked staff. They include posters and template letters to enable…

NHS Head calls for primary care vision NHS England Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard commented that the NHS needs a “modern vision” for primary care. She set out her ideas at the annual conference of the NHS Confederation. Quoted by the Health Service Journal, Ms Pritchard spoke of some “startling” changes and opportunities which, she believes,…