Dispute over growing appointment numbers

GP and NHS leaders have clashed over another upsurge in appointment requests. NHS England says the nearly 26 million appointments in December demonstrate progress in improving primary care, while the Royal College of GPs says it shows that pressure on practices is becoming even more intolerable.

NHS England National Director for Primary Care, Dr Amanda Doyle, said: “The NHS published a plan last year to improve access to GP services, which includes upgrading telephone systems to make it easier for people to contact their general practice, while more than 36,000 additional staff have joined GP teams since 2019 to deliver even more appointments. This is incredible progress from hardworking teams across the country”.

The Royal College of GPs Chair, Professor Kamila Hawthorne, replied: “These latest figures show GPs and their teams continue to work harder than ever, under highly difficult circumstances, to ensure their patients receive the vital care and services they need.”

Same-day hubs to triage patients

A large area of England could see patients diverted to “same-day access hubs” when they seek urgent practice care. Under the plans, which affect Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire, calls would firstly go to the hubs for triage when patients select same-day care. The hubs would be able to provide same-day care for conditions such as urinary tract infections.

The Integrated Care Board covering the area says the proposals would release capacity in general practice to focus on those with more complex needs.

Apology after practice letters not sent

The East London NHS Foundation Trust has apologised after its systems failed to send correspondence to practices over a period of two months. The problem covered December and January and is blamed on a “systems issue”. The Trust says the problem has now been repaired. It affected letters sent to practices after patients attended consultations.

A spokesperson said: “GP colleagues have been contacted to advise them of the issue. This has been recorded as a safety incident in the Trust as the absence of timely information may have affected clinical decision-making or resulted in the need for the GP to contact services to clarify the management of a patient or service user. Or the individual may have had to call their team to seek advice.”

Extra support for demanding patients as practice deploys new systems

The Abbey Medical Centre, Kenilworth has used new technology to identify some of its most demanding patients, thereby reducing calls while providing extra support.

The practice discovered that 25 patients accounted for 8% of all appointments in a week. The medical centre is now offering targeted support to some of these patients, ensuring they maintain contact with just one health professional. This has reduced their number of appointment requests from 8% to 2%.

The practice serves 16,000 people and the latest project followed their installation of new phone systems. These were also used to identify peak times for phone calls and to ensure that the maximum number of reception staff worked at these times. NHS England says the practice shows how effectively new phone systems can be used to reduce demand for appointments and pressure on reception staff and clinicians.

Campaign seeks to divert patients to pharmacies

NHS E has promised a new campaign to ease pressure on practices by diverting patients to pharmacies.

Adverts have been shown on TV, radio, social media and in bus stops, telling the public about new services at pharmacies. It follows the decision to enable pharmacies to advise patients on treatments for sinusitis, sore throat, earache, infected insect bites, impetigo, shingles and uncomplicated urinary tract infections.

Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, who backed the campaign, said: “This bold new approach will free up to ten million GP appointments per year, helping to cut waiting lists and deliver our long-term plan for the NHS”.

Wales to consider action over contract stalemate

Welsh GP leaders are to debate industrial action after contract talks broke down in the country.

Motions have been tabled for the Welsh conference of local medical committees. One motion calls for “meaningful industrial action”, while another calls for a threat of mass practice resignations. The conference will also consider “alternative models of primary care”.