All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers
Dear Colleagues
Please find links to the following documents
1. Network DES Specification
2. Network DES Guidance
3. Network DES Registration Form
4. Network Agreement
5. Network Contract VAT Information Note
6. GP contract 2019/20: NHS England...
All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates can be found here
A cup of tea and biscuit needed, its a long one this week, we have tried to reduce and include as many links as possible
Somerset GP Board
Early Help Assessment Form again
Vaccs and Imms Guidance 2018/19...
All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates can be read here
LARC Contract
Advice for NHS General Practitioners on Military Veterans attending with concerns on use of Mefloquine
Capita
BMJ Careers Somerset LMC Members Benefits Package
Letter...
All Somerset GPs and Practice Managers This and previous updates can be found here
NEW LMC Chairman
PSU (Provider Support Unit) GP Options Documents
Firearms guidance update - message on behalf of John Canning, Chair of the Professional Fees...
Prostap
Annual Flu Immunisation plan 15/16
Men C Freshers Programme
Vaccine Update special March edition
Vaccination and Immunisation programme 2015/16
New Out of Ours Service From 1st July
GP networks GPC Database
GP Networks a Step by Step Guide
Prostap Prostap DCS prefilled subcutaneous...
We know, general practice is facing unprecedented and mounting pressure from rising patient demand and widespread staff shortages. A significant extra burden is resulting from inappropriate and unnecessary work being transferred to general practice from secondary care settings. Doctors and...
This guidance is the result of work by a representative, cross-system, stakeholder-led Task and Finish Group,which was asked to look at prescribing across the primary and secondary care interface. At every stage, the ambition behind this important work has been to support prescribers to ensure...
2023/24
NHS England Network Contract Directed Enhanced Service (DES) 2023/24
Practice and PCN Ready Reckoner 2023/224
GP Contract 22/23
Network contract Direct Enhanced Service Indicators and SNOMED codes - This tool provides a list of SNOMED codes for each indicator which are used to...
The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) rewards contractors for the provision of quality care and helps to standardise improvements in the delivery of primary medical services. Contractor participation in QOF is voluntary.
Changes to QOF are agreed as part of wider changes to the General...
The NHS Standard Contract is mandated by NHS England for use by commissioners for all contracts for healthcare services other than primary care.
Where commissioners are placing new contracts with providers, they must now use these updated versions of the relevant Contract with immediate...
NHS England, HEE, RCGP and the BMA GPs committee (GPC) are working closely together to ensure that we have a skilled, trained and motivated workforce in general practice. We have jointly produced a ten point action plan to address immediate issues, and to take the initial steps in building the...
The DH commissioned from the Law Society a comprehensive guide to the law relating to deprivation of liberty safeguards. This has a helpful section on care homes and other health settings.
Full Guidance
Eye Casualty - GP Emergency same day referrals can be sent via the following routes.
Patient is sent to eye casualty with the physical referral letter. Please note that the eye clinic is not a walk in clinic and patients are only directed to it if that is the outcome of the triage by our...
Please see the following advice leaflet from the RCOG concerning fitness to fly during pregnancy.
https://www.rcog.org.uk/globalassets/documents/patients/patient-information-leaflets/pregnancy/air-travel-pregnancy.pdf
There is no statutory requirement for GPs to complete the airline form for...
The GPC We have gone through the document in detail, and the BMA policy directorate has produced a 'Focus on the GP Forward view' and a Funding Analysis
Focus on
Annex 1: Funding analysis of the GP Forward View
Payments to GP contractors will change from 1 April 2015 to reflect negotiated contract changes and the Government's acceptance of the Doctors and Dentists Review Body recommendation for contractor GPs.
2015/16 Doctors and Dentists Review Body (DDRB) recommendation
The DDRB recommended that...
Seniority payments are being phased out. The seniority scheme will end completely on 31 March 2020.During the six year phasing out period, those who were in receipt of seniority on 31 March 2014 will continue to receive payments. GPs not already in receipt of seniority on 31 March 2014 will...
Background
As part of the 2013/14 contract imposition, the Government in England planned far-reaching changes to practice funding to reduce the wide variation in funding per patient between practices. Practices with above average levels of funding as a result of GMS correction factor payments...
This Guidance note has been produced by the GPC (General Pracitioners committee) to help GPs and LMCs understand the funding arrangements for seniority payments
Full Guidance Here
The global sum allocation formula, or Carr-Hill Formula, has been used as the basis of core funding for GMS practices since the inception of the new GMS contract in 2004. This short explanatory paper has been produced now because the allocation formula is newly relevant to many GP practices. See...
This short paper provides an overview and brief analysis of the Rt. Hon. Jeremy Hunt's 'New Deal for General Practice', set out in a speech delivered on 19 June 2015.Ostensibly the Health Secretary's speech was intended to set out 'the first steps in a new deal for general practice', though many...
Please see the GPC guidance 'Focus on the new IT requirements of the GP contract in England'. This sets out the requirements for:
Referral management and use of the NHS Number
Summary Care Record
GP2GP record transfers
Online prescriptions
Online...
NHS Digital have now published a GDPR guidance note . This guidance is from the national GDPR working group and Information Governance Alliance and will help organisations to make the changes needed due to the implementation of the GDPR in May 2018
The GPC IT committee lead Dr Paul Cundy who a...
Details of all the changes to the GMS Contract, since it was introduced in 2003, are available from the NHS Employers website, where you will also find a useful Summary of the changes for 2015/16 changes, which can also be found here
This is a two year programme of support available to all newly qualified GPs and nurses working in general practice. This fellowship is part of NHS Long Term Plan Commitment to aid primary care workforce recruitment and retention. It is a national scheme with regional variations. Somerset GP...
NHS England published the General Practice Forward View in April this year. It set out a plan, backed by a multi-billion pound investment, to stabilise and transform general practice.
It includes practical and funded actions in five areas; investment, workforce, workload, infrastructure and...
This briefing paper provides general background for Members and their staff on NHS primary medical services provided by general practitioners (GPs) in England.
Jump to full report
This briefing paper provides general background for Members and their staff on NHS primary medical services...
Getting ready for patients to have access to their future data
NHS Digital - General practice readiness checklist
This link will take you to a general practice readiness checklist for to use to ensure you are prepared for the upcoming changes of providing prospective (future) access to all...
GMS Contract 2021/22
The APMS directions reflecting GMS and PMS contract changes that came into force from 1 April 2021 along with the Directed Enhanced Service Directions and the Statement of Financial Entitlements Directions have now been published.
Contractors should note that the revised...
GMS Contract Quality Outcomes Framework 2021/22
The British Medical Association's General Practitioner Committee (GPC) and NHS England have agreed to provide practice stability and support recovery. QOF for 2021/22 will be based on the indicator set already agreed for 2020/21, with very limited...
Implementing the 2018/19 GP contract
GMS Contract Guidance and Audit requirements 2018/19
Technical Requirements for 2018/19 GMS Contract Changes August Version 3
GPC England has concluded negotiations with NHS Employers for amendments to the 2018/19 GMS (and PMS) contract.
The agreement...
Named GP for all patients [contract]
Online access to medical records
Online appointment booking
Assurance of Out of Hours provision
QOF
Minor surgery
Armed Forces
Maternity and Paternity cover
Avoiding Unplanned Admissions
Patient participation
Alcohol enhanced service
Publication of GP...
2023/24
GP Contract 2023/24 financial information
Update to the GP contract agreement 2023/24: financial implications
Standard GMS Contract Variation Notice August 2023
Practice and PCN income ready reckoner for 2023/24
Implementing the 2023/24 GP Contract Changes to Personal Medical Services...
The Health and Social Care Information Centre has now published the GP Earnings and Expenses Enquiry Report (EEQ) for the financial year 2013/14. The report was produced by the Technical Steering Committee (TSC) which includes representatives from the four UK health departments, NHS Employers...
The BMA website has been updated with a specific section for the GP Forward View. They have pulled everything into one hub page and any updates/new information/guidance specific to the GP Forward View will be linked through this central page.
GP Forward View
The BMA has produced a 'Focus on...' document about funding changes this year in general practice. You can read it here. It gives the figures, nationally, for the additional funding included to cover CQC fees, professional indemnity fees, national insurance contributions etc
General practice is recognised as the foundation of and the front door to the NHS. Over 85% of doctor-patient contact occurs in general practice,1 ensuring the health and wellbeing of our communities.The Partnership Review was established because general practice and GP partners are facing major...
General practice is one of the most important and respected institutions in our communities; it is the foundation of the NHS. It has been credited as a major reason for the NHS being one of the most cost-effective models of healthcare, outperforming many countries in the Western world which...
The Local Medical Committees (LMCs) of Cornwall, Somerset and Devon have collaborated with the South-West peninsula Clinical Oversight Group to produce guidance for GP practices and care homes in relation to the contractual framework expected of GPs providing GP medical services to care homes....
GPC welcomes any funding or support for General Practice but recognises that it is incredibly difficult to keep track of what is available and how the different pots of money relate to one another. We are also concerned that often the time between announcement of funds and the closing date for...
Overview
In October 2015, the Prime Minister announced the intention to create a new ‘voluntary’ contract for GPs in England that would provide ‘at scale’ general practice (i.e. over populations of at least 30,000-50,000 patients, but possibly larger depending on the services they cover). Over...
The following guidance is based on information contained in ‘Quality first: Managing workload to deliver safe patient care’, available on the BMA website at:
https://www.bma.org.uk/advice/employment/gp-practices/quality-first
Formal list closure
GMS and PMS practices can apply formally to...
Green Impact For Health
The Green Impact for Health project has been developed for General Practice by the National Union of Students, GPs, trainees, and medical students. It's supported by University of Bristol, NHS Health Education South West and the Severn Faculty of the RCGP. The web-based...
NHS England has developed guidance for commissioners responding to growing requests from practices temporarily to suspend patient registration. NHS England wants to ensure that commissioners understand the risks involved and are able fully to assess requests.
2015-16 changes to the GP contract do not just impact on GP contractors - they affect salaried and locum GPs too.
All GPs should read the guidance on the contract changes as a whole, but below are four of the main aspects of the agreement that apply to sessional GPs along with an explanation of...
As part of the 2017/18 GP contract agreement, it was agreed that £30m would be paid to practices to cover 2016/17 rises in indemnity insurance costs for all doctors delivering GMS work. This amount has been based on average rises in costs using figures received from surveyed GPs and medical...
Seniority payments are part of an individual GP's pay. The payment that a GP receives is based in part on how much they earn compared to a published interim seniority figure (ISF). The ISF for 2016/17 has been announced as £94,982 in England and £87,219 in Wales. Further information can be found...
TheNHS five year forward view (Forward View), published by NHS England and other national NHS bodies (2014), sets out a shared view on how services need to change and what models of care will be required in the future. Its key arguments are that much more attention should be given to prevention...
This guidance is intended to help practices to ensure the safe provision of core services to patients, while fulfilling their professional duty and contractual obligations. GMS and PMS practices in circumstances of unmanageable workload demands, may need to take steps to safely control their...
Our thanks to Humberside Group of Local Medical Committees Ltd for sharing this useful Document
A practice Guide to funding and support for General practice
Locum reimbursement for parental leave (maternity, paternity & adoption)
Eligibility
When a salaried GP or GP partner is absent from the practice due to a period of parental leave (maternity/paternity/adoption) the practice is eligible to receive funding towards the cost of cover for that...
The BMA has issued guidance about medical indemnity in a bid to help GPs cope with spiralling costs.
The association has worked with the medical defence organisations to produce a report which outlines what exactly indemnity is, what options are available to GPs and why the cost of premiums is...
MORE ACCURATE GENERAL PRACTICE APPOINTMENT DATA (GPAD): WE NEED YOUR HELP full document
General practice should record all appointments in their appointment system.
Does your practice do this?
The largest and most comprehensive data repository of patient data in the world is held in British...
GPC Advice as follows
What is 'named GP' contract requirement?
This contractual requirement builds upon the 2014-2015 agreement to provide a named and accountable GP for over 75s.
The 'named accountable GP for all patients' requirement has now been extended to all patients from 1 April...
The 2017/18 NHS standard contract for secondary care trusts came into force on 1 April 2017. The NHS standard contract for secondary care trusts has placed new requirements on hospitals to reduce inappropriate bureaucratic workload shift onto GP practices.
Many of those changes to the standard...
NHS England has published a guide containing support to general practice to make sure that at least 25% of their appointments are available to book online. It covers a full list of the types of appointments to include, important things to consider and configuration hint and tips.
Online Access...
Online Access to Digital GP Record 2019/20 contract
Joint BMA and NHSE statement Online access
The General Medical Services (GMS) and Personal Medical Services (PMS) contracts (2014/15) include the requirement for general practices to offer and promote to patients: online appointment...
Practice and Primary Care Network (PCN) income ready reckoner for 2023/24
As in previous years, this ready reckoner has been produced by NHS England in partnership with the GPC - and is intended to provide an indication of the changes in income streams that may affect a GMS practice and Primary...
GP practices will be aware that, from 1 April 2015, it is a contractual requirement for practices to publish on their practice website by the end of the financial year (ie 31 March 2016) the mean earnings for all GPs in their practice relating to the previous financial year (ie...
This report is the culmination of a major project launched over a year ago which has included: regional GP consultation events hosted by LMCs; a regional event specifically targeted at sessional and trainee GPs; patient deliberative events; and the major GP survey undertaken in the early months...
Please find a link below to the paper 'Responsive, safe and sustainable: our urgent prescription for general practice', which was published on Thursday 14th April at midday.
Document link
The BMA's England GP committee (GPCE) has generated the following guide to enable practices to prioritise safe patient care, within the present bounds of the GMS contract.
Safe working in general practice
Pushing back on inappropriate workload
Updated Template letters for practice use
GPs...
Read the full paper here
General practice is in crisis, with a marked increase in workload at a time of underinvestmentand a shortage of GPs. Demand will continue to grow due to an aging population and it isessential that GPs are able to protect themselves and their patients from excessive...
The traditional model of general practice is under pressure, as momentum builds to provide integrated care services at scale.
Against the backdrop of rising demand and diminishing resources, many practices are left in a vulnerable position, creating an impetus to take forward new ways of...
This GPC England report focuses on the need for urgent action to address the funding deficit impacting general practice, the requirement for a sustainable expansion of the workforce, the importance of a strategy for reducing workload pressures, the need to remove the burden of the current...
The Department of Health has published the General Medical Services Statement of Financial Entitlements (Amendment No.3) Directions 2015 The document sets out amendments to the GMS contract for GPs from October 2015 affecting global sum, dispensing and seniority payments.
Please find the...
Briefing: Somerset Practice Quality Scheme; a framework for innovation
1 Purpose
1.1 To explain the context and contents of the local GP quality scheme pilot in Somerset. The pilot is an alternative approach to the Quality and Outcomes Framework element of the General Medical Services...
This evidence paper accompanies the SPQS proposal and sets out the evidence and rationale for the proposal. It briefly summarises the development of QOF, the criticisms of QOF and why we think SPQS might deliver better value for patients, clinicians and commissioners.
The development of QOF
It...
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Somerset introduced a local alternative to the national GP quality incentive scheme (Quality and Outcomes Framework), in 2014. The Somerset pilot is regarded by NHS England as an early pilot of co-commissioning arrangements. This brief paper is intended to help colleagues in...
South West Academic Health Science Network Evaluation of Somerset Practice Quality Scheme
Introduction
NHS England engaged with the clinical community in Somerset as part of the Improving General Practice call to action in autumn 2013. The view of GPs, the Clinical Commissioning Group and the...
Beyond the immediate clinical need of a patient - if a patient is declared dead on the premises how should you proceed?
If the death is sudden and unexpected you will need to contact the coroner via the police. The police will arrange for transport of the body from your site - the coroner may...
After three months of development and piloting, NHS England South (South West) has launched an initiative aimed at helping General Practices to considering their sustainability status and to explore options for responding to the current challenges facing General Practice and the wider Primary...
Updated Technical Requirements and Coding Documents for 2019-20
Please be advised that the Technical Requirements for 2019-20 have been updated and now include information for the Network Contract DES, 2019/20 Dementia Data Collection, National Diabetes Audit 2019-20, Childhood Seasonal Flu and...
The UK has been at the forefront of modern primary care development, and many countries continue to look to the NHS as a model to emulate. However, primary and community care services now face major challenges;with an increasing workload, an ageing population, and increasingly complex medical...
NHS England have released the Multispecialty Community Provider (MCP) Emerging Care Model and Contract framework. A link to the framework can be found here.
The first draft of MCP contract was released in December
The Primary Care Digital Operating Model 2019–21 (previously known as the GP IT Operating Model) has been published. It covers the policies, standards and operating procedures that clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) are obliged to work to and support the provision of digital requirements under...
Workforce Minimum Data Set - GPC Focus on May 2017
Introduction
The GPC has been active in dialogue with the Department of Health (DH), HSCIC and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to address some of the concerns about the submission of the Workforce Minimum Data Set (WMDS),...
This guide will help you to agree quantitative limits to individual safe practice for GPs. Appropriate limits on workload will depend on the unique circumstances of each practice the contractual status and the preferences of each individual GP, as well as the complexity of care being provided....
