Somerset LMC Weekly Update Friday 2nd December 2016
Date sent: Friday 2 December 2016
All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates can be found here
- Further Update on Shotgun and Firearms Certification
- Chaand Nagpul Newsletter on the workload and patient safety survey
- GPC List Management Guidance
- Dealing with unfair comments on websites
- Vaccine Update Edition 255 November
- GMC free Lunchtime session- Raising and acting on concerns 14th December please book online
- Have you downloaded the Somerset LMC APP yet?
Further Update on Shotgun and Firearms Certification We understand from the GPC that an urgent meeting has been requested with the Home Office by the BMA as there remain a number of unresolved concerns about this matter. In the meantime, our advice remains that practices should always respond to the notification letter from the police. If the GP does have a concern this fact should obviously be passed on to the police promptly - even if all the details are not included - but the following reply may be useful in other circumstances. Our thanks to several practice manager for letting us see their suggestions, from which this is constructed.
I refer to your recent correspondence regarding a firearm/shotgun certificate application for the person named above.
As I am not approved under section 12 of the Mental Health Act 1983 (as amended 2007) as having special expertise in the diagnosis of mental illness or personality disorder, I cannot offer any assurance that the person is not a risk to themselves or others for one of these reasons.
I confirm that the relevant code has been added to the patient’s notes, and I recognise this practice’s duty to inform you if we have any significant concerns about this matter in the future.
Should further information be required from the medical record we hold, a fee is applicable.
GPC List Management Guidance This provides practices with guidance on list management such as information on formal list closure and informal temporary suspension of patient registration. GPC are aware that NHS England are sending guidance on temporary suspension of patient registration to commissioners, some of the information in this guidance contradicts the BMA’s guidance and we would like to assure practices that the GPC believe their guidance is within the regulations.
Dealing with unfair comments on websites Health service providers are increasingly finding that people are using social and professional websites to comment about specific providers and staff members. NHS Choices is one such website, which allows members of the public to rate and review NHS services. This guidance sets out how health service providers can take steps to have defamatory material removed from websites, including NHS Choices. For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this guidance note should be relied upon as constituting legal advice. If you have a specific issue relating to the law of defamation, we would recommend that providers seek independent legal advice from a specialist defamation solicitor.
Kind Regards
Jill
Jill Hellens
Executive Director
Somerset LMC
TEL: 01823 331428
Fax:01823 338561
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