Somerset LMC Weekly Update Friday 5th February 2021
Date sent: Friday 5 February 2021
Sent to all Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates are available here
- Covid Vaccination Programme
- Additional Funding for CVP Housebound Patients:
- Serious Shortage Protocol (SSP) for levothyroxine 12.5 microgram tablets
- Child Health Intelligence Services
- CQC activity in Primary Care
- Somerset New To Practice General Practice Fellowship Programme for Newly Qualified GPs
- New to Practice The GPN fellowship programme
- Appointments in general practice
- Freedom of information request from St Andrew's University - or - the secret of great comedy #2
- Somerset Integrated Care System responds to redundancies
Covid Vaccination Programme: The CVP is the great success of the pandemic. The UK was the first country in the western world to start and has vaccinated a larger part of its population than anywhere else in Europe. On Tuesday the 10,000,000 milestone was reached. There is a real sense of hope – albeit carefully modulated for once - for the first time. We should be clear that the main reason for this, after the successful vaccine procurement scheme, is that general practice teams have given over 75% of all the jabs. All too often it feels the spotlight is on hospital colleagues and general practice is ignored, or worse, criticised.
So it is good that the Prime Minister, the Secretary of State and Nadhim Zahawi, the minister responsible for the CVP, have all given credit to GP practices for their supreme efforts. Mr Hancock & Mr Zahawi wrote, “We are enormously impressed with how readily primary care teams have come forward to play such a vital role in the vaccination programme, under truly unique circumstances.”
The LMC shares and reinforces these sentiments. Circumstances are indeed unique and difficult: not everyone understands what is going on. Somerset practices have made astonishing efforts trying to maintain “normal” services for patients while releasing colleagues for the CVP. There is often anxiety and even intolerance from patients: these are trying times for many.
The LMC also must record thanks for the pragmatic approach taken at the CCG when it can but regrets that central management have created significant frustration for practices with, amongst other things, the centralised booking system and duplication of assurance processes. Our national representative, deputy GPC chair Mark Sanford-Wood, is working hard for us and has taken many of your concerns direct to NHSEI.
The word “unprecedented” has become a cliché but it really does apply to what you are all doing. You should be proud of yourselves.
Additional Funding for CVP Housebound Patients: Richard Vautrey wrote last night, we have been pushing NHSEI to recognise the additional work involved in providing housebound patients with covid vaccination. They have confirmed today that they will now pay an additional £10 for this group.
"An additional supplement of £10 per visit to a housebound patient in order to administer the COVID-19 vaccinations. This supplement is on top of the £12.58 Item of Service fee. If a PCN grouping or community pharmacy contractor administers vaccinations to a housebound patient at the same time as vaccinating other members of the household who are currently eligible for vaccination, only one £10 supplement per visit can be claimed. The £10 supplement applies retrospectively to any first dose vaccinations that have taken place since 14 December 2020 in line with this criteria, and will also apply to second dose vaccinations that take place in line with these arrangements. "
Serious Shortage Protocol (SSP) for levothyroxine 12.5 microgram tablets: From 3 February 2021 until 5 March 2021 the SSP will enable community pharmacists to supply patients with levothyroxine 25 microgram tablets to be taken on alternate days instead without a new prescription. If you have any questions please contact nhsbsa.prescriptionservices@nhsbsa.nhs.uk
Child Health Intelligence Services: The new CHIS Information Sharing Agreement (ISA), developed by the regional DPOs with CCG and LMC involvement. is being launched on Monday 8th February. It allows all 0-19 immunisation data to be extracted weekly from EMIS using HI Hub, plus 6-8 week developmental checks and notification of babies at risk of Hepatitis B.
CHIS appreciates how extremely busy practices are and thanks you in advance for taking the time to read, sign and return the ISA. More information about HI Hub will come with the ISA to help answer any questions. Once set up by the team HI Hub is said to significantly reduce your administrative burden and ensure complete data is on the CHIS system. The LMC understands that a staff member will need to sit at a PC during the extraction. If you choose not to use HI Hub CHIS will be happy to discuss clinical system reports that your team can run and send them instead.
If you have any questions please contact:
Chris Ellis Op Lead SW CHIS: Chris.ellis@inhealth-intelligence.com ;
MD & Caldicott Guardian: Phil.kirby@inhealth-intelligence.com ; or
DPO: Michael.pennington@inhealth-intelligence.com
CQC activity in Primary Care: Following the update on the CQC’s regulatory approach on 15 January and further lobbying by the GPC, CQC has written to all CCG primary care leads and NHSE/I regional directors confirming that it will only inspect practices in response to reports of possible significant risk of harm and when it cannot seek assurance through other routes. If an inspection is necessary, it will carry out as much activity off-site as possible.
Somerset New To Practice General Practice Fellowship Programme for Newly Qualified GPs: Are you or do you know a GP that has qualified since Nov 2018? If so, this funded fellowship programme may be of interest. It is a 2 year programme designed to provide personalised support to newly qualified GPs to help gain confidence and to develop enjoyable, fulfilling and sustainable careers in general practice. Our first cohort will start in March 2021. See programme here. Any questions, please contact Dr Catherine Ievers catherine.ievers1@nhs.net
New to Practice The GPN fellowship programme: Are you or do you know a newly qualified nurse or new to nursing in primary care? This is a 2 year fellowship linked to the above GP programme to support nurses and also provide a comprehensive education programme to address skills and knowledge required specifically when working in this field. Any questions please contact Alison Williams, Alison.williams16@nhs.net
Appointments in general practice: New national data from NHS Digital shows the incredible achievement of general practice in delivering an increase of around 170,000 appointments in December 2020 compared to December 2019, in addition to launching and running the expanded flu programme and the Covid-19 vaccination programme. Read more here.
Freedom of information request from St Andrew's University - or - the secret of great comedy #2: Colleagues may have received a request under the FOI Act asking for a copy the practice’s Gifts & Hospitality and Declaration of Interests registers. Disconcertingly one of the signatories was a Mr Ronald MacDonald but the other was Dr Margaret McCartney the respected Glasgow GP, academic and broadcaster known for her evidence based contributions to BBC Radio 4’s Inside Health. The LMC raised this with GPC and found that practices all over England had got this ill-timed request. We were also shocked to learn that researchers have taken to using the FOI Act to compel people to take part in their studies. After starting the hare running the LMC hears that Dr McCartney now regrets what has happened in her name and will not be expecting many replies. This does not answer what might happen should practices ignore a legally binding request for information - although further action from St Andrew’s seems unlikely. Interestingly this raised the fact that it is GPs rather than practices that are deemed to be “NHS bodies” for FOI Act purposes. So practices might say that they are unable to make a collective reply but that the university might like to send to the individual partners? More seriously, we are hoping that a withdrawal email will follow.
Somerset Integrated Care System responds to redundancies: The ICS has been working on an offer to support those facing redundancy due to the pandemic to get into health and social care roles. Somerset redundancies include 800 at Oscar Mayer, and 200 at Debenhams. The offer is:
- Prepare to Care with Yeovil College - The opportunity to learn about NHS & Social Care roles before applying and to get a qualification;
- Guaranteed interviews – for any role applied for where the candidate meets minimum requirements with any of the H&SC employers signed up;
- Support through application – including funding DBS where the cost is normally footed by the applicant.
There is no cost to organisations to take part and no expectation of creating otherwise unplanned roles to offer ‘guaranteed interviews’ but to offer a guaranteed interview to those that qualify
If your practice would like to help, please add an electronic signature to this letter which will be shared with Debenhams and Oscar Mayer staff. Please return to Jean Painter in the ICS Workforce Team (jean.painter@nhs.net).
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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