Somerset LMC Weekly Update Friday 11 May 2018
Date sent: Friday 11 May 2018
All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates can be found here
- The Cotton Buds of May - The latest blog from Dr Nick Bray LMC Chairman
- Electronic Prescribing & Medicines Administration (EMPA)
- GPFV Monies Survey Reminder
- SPH Update - DPO Services for Practices
- Low Value Medicine Guidance
- Early Help Assessment Form
- NHS complaints Data return:KO41b
- Spirometry in Primary Care (GPC Statement)
- Current Somerset Data Sharing Agreements
Electronic Prescribing & Medicines Administration (EMPA) Somerset Partnership is planning to roll out the Electronic Prescribing & Medicines Administration (EMPA) system which is currently in use in community hospitals and psychiatric units across the county. In time it will make the Medicines Administration Record (MAR) redundant in the community too, the loss of which we imagine GP colleagues will bear with fortitude. The benefits for patients, staff and GPs are clear: because of pressures on the OOH service a community hospital patient may currently have to wait several hours before getting an increased dose of morphine for instance. Changes to doses can be made remotely meaning that Community Nurses or relatives won’t have to bring MAR charts to surgeries for alteration. Transcription errors and demographic detail errors should be reduced. Access to Sompar’s clinical system Rio is required but this can be arranged and both online and practice-based training will be available. Your correspondent went through a test patient to prescribe a JIC medication and, unsurprisingly, found Rio different to EMIS but quite accessible nonetheless.
Please contact liz.harewood@sompar.nhs.uk or andrea.trill@tst.nhs.uk for more information or to volunteer to pilot EMPA.
GPFV Monies Survey Would practices that have not yet completed this survey please do so as soon as possible text from last weeks bulletin below
GPFV monies for Document flow Following on from the Optimising Document Workflow sessions delivered by EPI last year and practices receiving the extra funding to embed the training we now need some information from you on how the money has been spent and how many members of staff were trained as we have to report this to NHS England. Please could you complete this survey by Monday 14th May at the very latest, it should be reasonably quick Survey link
SPH Update - DPO Services for Practices SPH have had a good number of Practices who have expressed an interest in using us as their DPO. If we can get 65 Practices committed to use SPH for their DPO, this will bring down the cost per Practice to £375. If you have not already done so and are now interested, then please either email Rachel Stark rachel.stark1@nhs.net or Debbie Hale d.hale@nhs.net
Low Value Medicine Guidance Following two consultations on which items should not be routinely prescribed in primary care, and on conditions for which over the counter (OTC) items should not routinely be prescribed in primary care, NHS England published revised commissioning guidance for CCGs on reducing prescribing of OTC medicines for minor, short-term health concerns , as part of a drive to reduce prescribing of OTC medicines to save the NHS money. The GPC responded to both consultations, supporting the efforts to educate patients about self-care of minor ailments, and encouraging the appropriate use of effective medicines that are available from community pharmacies or other retail outlets. However, without changes to the GMS regulations that govern GP prescribing, we highlighted that GPs will be at risk of complaint from patients or criticism from their CCGs, and that the NHS England guidance cannot be used by CCGs to ban all such treatments.
GPs must continue to treat patients according to their individual circumstances and needs, and that includes issuing prescriptions where there are reasons why self-care is inappropriate.
The GPC has now published guidance on the contractual requirements for practices in prescribing OTC medicines for minor, short-term health concerns, which is available here
Early Help Assessment Form Problems continue to be experienced with the Somerset County Council Early Help Assessment form despite the LMC being reassured that GPs are only expected to complete a few, relevant sections. As previously reported the CCG Safeguarding Team share our concerns and have been working with Drs Nick Chapman & Berge Balian to try to make things better. In the meantime the CCG team have asked us to say that they would like to know of specific cases where the EHA form/process has had a direct impact on attempts to safeguard a child such as causing delay. Obviously this would be as well as raising it with Children’s Social Care. Please contact somccg.safeguarding-children@nhs.net. You should also be aware that there is a “Resolving Professional Differences” form to escalate disputes on the Professional Choices website.
NHS complaints data return: KO41b You will be aware that the window for practices to complete and submit the 2017/18 NHS complaints data return will open on Tuesday 8th May and run until Friday 8th June. The BMA has previously advised that practices are under no legal obligation to complete and submit the current KO41b return – instead the default obligation is for practices to comply with the 2009 complaints regulations. This view remains – however, following confirmation of our position last year, NHS Digital asked the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) to publish a new legal Direction that would provide the necessary legal obligation to complete the KO41b return. The DHSC have advised NHS Digital this week that the legal Direction is now with Ministers for formal sign off. Once signed off it will be sent to NHS Digital and published on its website. Following publication practices will be required to complete the return as requested by NHS England. We will inform you again when publication takes place.
Kind Regards
Jill
Jill Hellens
Executive Director
Somerset LMC
TEL: 01823 331428
Fax:01823 338561
General Practice in Somerset Great Place Great Potential
