As the dispute between junior doctors and the NHS continues to rumble on, we thought it would be a good idea to see how the action up to now has impacted on GP practices. While it would be easy to say it will have little or no impact, as many primary care ‘leaders’ have done,…

A workplace brings together different personalities and with that inevitably comes conflict. Unfortunately, conflict in the workplace often means that there are allegations of victimisation, harassment and bullying. Ironically, bullying itself is not contrary to the law but harassment is covered by the Equality Act 2010 if it relates to any of the protected characteristics:…

A new survey, released today (22 March 2016) by the Royal Medical Benevolent Fund (RMBF), highlights the overwhelming concern amongst doctors about the state of their mental health and wellbeing as a result of working under increasing pressure and scrutiny. The survey finds that 82% of doctors know of other doctors experiencing mental health issues…

All eyes were on NHS England recently and the announcement of the final GP contract in England for 2016/17. Amid plenty of fanfare, and no doubt keen to divert attention away from the Junior Doctor mess, the governing body was eager to shout about the new contract’s £220 million investment, part of which will pay for…

Do your patients get the right message when they visit your website? Does the information on your Home page help rather than hinder? What is the difference between practice news, a newsletter and an important announcement? Read on for some simple, non-technical advice on making your website make sense.. Keep a tidy Home page There…

In the latest round of CQC inspections, the number of practices up and down the country receiving an outstanding rating reached the 114 mark. That’s not too many given over 3,000 practices have been inspected, so what made the last three practices to receive the top rating really stand out? A caring practice Several areas…

DISMISSAL FOR EXAGGERATING SICKNESS AND USING COVERT SURVEILLANCE The recent case of Metroline West Ltd v Ajaj UKEAT/0185/15/RN considered whether dismissing an employee could be unfair, despite the fact that the employee had exaggerated their sickness. The Claimant, Mr Ajaj, a bus driver, was injured in February 2014 as a result of slipping on water…