Top 10 tips to support the latest primary care GP contract changes

Tara Humphrey, Dr Andy Foster, Dr Hussain Gandhi and Ben Gowland, took part in a one-hour long, bitesize webinar to dissect and advise on the recent policy changes and how best to lead and deliver on these locally – here are their top 10 tips

CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on Primary Care Network Specialists

Knowing how to best lead and deliver on the recent policy changes on a local level can be a tricky task. Below are 10 ways you can support these changes.

Assess the contractual requirements and benchmark these against what the needs of your population are, and your own vision

Avoid what doesn’t pay well and what you and your team consider to be superficial. Be selective about where your areas of priority are.

Widen your support systems by considering what can be managed at network level

• Would a network-level triage system work, for example, by building capacity by drawing on a larger pool of resources?
• Consider streamlining things such as same-day access so patients have an increased opportunity to be seen more quickly at an alternative practice which is still geographically local
• You could also think about redeploying your ARRS staff to provide support when there are spikes in demand throughout the day

Map your resources

Spend time on regularly scrutinising current staffing resources (and structures) and identify where gaps and vacancies exist. 

Introduce measures to pinpoint any high-pressure areas versus services which may be under-utilised. 

Don’t forget to continually review and tap into any community assets and reduce pressure by signposting, where appropriate, to other locally commissioned services and providers.

Use this as an opportunity to focus on improving access to the practice

• Consider better use of your care navigator/s.
• Increase support for frontline reception staff.
• Where would e-consultations (and other health tech systems) be more beneficial in giving quicker access and supporting clinical capacity? 
• Could use of the on-call clinician’s time be improved?

Re-define the language around appointments

Replace terminology such as ‘urgent’ and ‘routine’ (which can mean different things to different people at different times) with ‘same day’, ‘seven day’ and or ‘follow up’. Be clear about what these definitions mean within your practice.

Exercise caution when it comes to waiting lists

These are always a useful tool for assessing capacity and demand and maintaining awareness of service performance; however, try to restrict waiting lists for follow ups, rather than first contacts.

Maintain a continuous review of data measures and feedback mechanisms

• Are you on top of your current data measures and are there any which could offer more useful insight?
• How many appointments have been requested? How many were offered?
• What did the patient ask for in the first place? What did they actually get?
• What does the patient journey or flow look like? Are they happy?
• Consider whether you are catering for the five per cent of unhappy patients versus 95% of satisfied patients

Always keep in mind that Primary Care (and General Practice) is not, and never has been, an emergency service

Prioritise the provision of a safe and sustainable service, harnessing the power of the clarity provided within the latest contractual requirements and always ensure staff are well-supported.

Ensure there is widespread clarity and understanding of the changes

This means making both your workforce and your local patient population fully aware. Update your web pages, push out comms via your social media platforms, hang posters, etc. 

Above all, use this as an opportunity to re-clarify your access points and how patients can get the best from their practice and Primary Care team.

Your focus should always be on the delivery of high-quality healthcare which meets the needs of your population

It sounds obvious, but we can often lose sight of this when under extreme pressure.