Somerset LMC Weekly Update Friday 16th October 2020
Date sent: Friday 16 October 2020
Sent to all Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates are available here
- Immunisation Appointment Calculator
- Prostap offer to Somerset Practices
- SGPET Respiratory Sessions
- Death Certificates - A reminder
- QOF and ES Webinars for Update
- Practice team wellbeing
- Freelance GP locums Forms, the ’10 week window’, and validating Form A
- Prescribing Directions - Latin Abbreviations are a dead language
- Top Tips
- And Finally...
Immunisation Appointment Calculator: This is a tool developed by SW CHIS for your practices’ administrative staff to help them check the earliest a child can be scheduled. This is an appointment guide only and a clinician is responsible for deciding when an immunisation should be given. The calculator has different tabs that can show: appointment due dates for each date within a selected year; an individual child’s various immunisation dates given their date of birth; and dates for subsequent immunisations based on the previous date of immunisation for a child. If you have any questions please get in touch with erik.renz@nhs.net
CHIS would like to hear what topics would be best for your practices for future GP Sessions, the survey is quick to complete and has two short multiple choice questions.
Death Certificates - A reminder: Many colleagues are blessed with capable teams to deal with important things like these but a reminder from the County Registrar for when you have to do it yourself. Scan the front and the back of the MCCD (to show if Coroner involved) and email it with the subject line “surname, forename, date of death” to SomersetRegistration@somersetgov.uk
QOF and ES Webinars for Update: Places are still available on our QOF Update and Enhanced Services webinars being delivered by Insight Solutions. Enhanced Services webinar 22nd October and repeated on 12th November. QOF Update 12th November. All LMC events can be viewed here.
Practice team wellbeing: We are aware that all staff have been affected either personally due to COVID 19 or they have family members shielding, some may have had to adapt to working from home which can lead to isolation and lack of communication with the team. The fear of COVID and all the changes in the workplace may create nervousness and anxieties. As we know these factors can have an impact on our mental health and general wellbeing.
Staff may not want to raise their concerns as this may be difficult, particularly when everyone is so busy. These feelings can be felt by everyone GPs, Practice Managers, clinical staff, receptionists, admin and secretaries, i.e. the whole team
When COVID 19 began there was a lot of appreciation for NHS staff but we now are aware that there is a sense of frustration and anger and this can be very difficult to cope with, and we need to ensure we are all OK. It’s important to try and keep in touch with the team even when seeing them every day, maybe offering a wellbeing check just to see how things are going. It could be an informal process just asking some simple questions which can help monitor any changes and spot early signs that things aren’t going so well for them, 1-2-1 Wellbeing check in template can be found here and Wellbeing coaching questions can be found here . This doesn’t have to fall to the practice manager it can be a team leader or another. We have been asked recently what resources are available to practices in addition to those offered by the LMC and hope that you find some of the links below useful:
- Somerset safehouse
- Looking After You Too offers coaching support for all staff.
- Signposting for all free support and self-help resources can be found here and here
- NHS Employers Health and Wellbeing
- NHS Employers – Supporting staff in the workplace
Freelance GP locums Forms, the ’10 week window’, and validating Form A: The 2020/21 freelance GP locum Forms A and B can also be found on the PCSE website located in the ‘Information for Practitioner. Locum, & non-GP’ webpage, using this link
Although the forms and guidance state that GP locum work that is more than 10 weeks old cannot be ‘pensioned’ this rule is being temporarily removed during the current Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to give GP locums more time to complete their forms. The removal of the ’10 week window’ takes effect from 1 April 2020 until further notice. This means that, for example, a freelance GP locum can declare work performed in April 2020 on their August 2020 Form B subject to the Form A being validated at the time. NHS England/PCSE and Local Health Boards in Wales have been made aware of this.
In addition, during the current pandemic there is no need for the commissioning Practice to enter the ‘Practice stamp’ at Part 2 of Form A so long as the name of the Practice is entered and the form is signed and dated. A digital/electronic signature is acceptable.
With effect from 1 April 2020 where a freelance GP locum has overpaid their monthly NHS Pension Scheme contributions they will not be reimbursed if the amount is less than £1.00. Similarly if they have underpaid an amount of less than £1.00 they will not be required to pay the shortfall.
Prescribing Directions - Latin Abbreviations are a dead language: We are grateful to a Taunton practice for sharing a SEA where misunderstanding had arisen from a prescriber writing “BD” (bis die = twice daily) which the dispenser had transcribed without translation. The patient wrongly interpreted it as take once daily. (OD = omni die = every day btw.) The LMC Med Dir loves a bit of vestigial Latin, like “PRN” (pro re nata = “as the matter arises” whence take when needed), but has to admit that few these days will have a clue. Straightforward English terms are both recommended and preferred. Sic transit gloria mundi.
Top Tips:
Can be found here. New items this week are:
-
QOF Influenza Invitation Snomed codes for the flu season this year
-
QOF
-
Influenza Reminder
And Finally...
It's not all about you!: Eleanor Rooosevelt, the USA’s longest serving First Lady, said, “You wouldn't worry so much about what others think of you if you realised how seldom they do."
Kind Regards
Jill
Jill Hellens
Executive Director
Somerset LMC
Crown Medical Centre, Venture Way, Taunton, TA2 8QY
Tel: (01823) 331 428
Fax: (01823) 338 561
www.somersetlmc.co.uk
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