This week’s episode looks at GPs with extended roles and how they could help move services out of hospitals and into the community, reduce waiting times for patients and boost GP retention.

Emma is speaking to Dr Charlie Andrews, a GP partner and a GP with an extended role in gastroenterology. Charlie is the driving force behind a programme in the south west of England that trains GPs with extended roles in gastroenterology. This has been the basis for a new framework for GPs with extended roles that has been endorsed by the Primary Care Gastroenterology Society and the British Society of Gastroenterology.

Charlie explains how the training programme works and the potential for GPs with extended roles to improve referral pathways and tackle some of the challenges facing the NHS, including workforce issues. He also talks about why the framework should be used by ICBs to develop GPs with extended roles in gastroenterology across England and how it could provide a model for other clinical specialties to develop GPs with extended roles.

Charlie is happy for anyone who wants to discuss the training programme or anything to do with GPwER in gastroenterology to contact him by email on [email protected].

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

The GPwER in gastroenterology framework

RCGP information on GPwERs - including links to frameworks for some other specialties

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This week Emma and Nick talk about the government agreeing to negotiate a completely new GP contract within the term of this parliament and what that could mean for the profession.

They also discuss the government’s decision to scrap NHS England and how it could affect general practice. And they look at the future of the GP partnership model after an influential health think tank, the Nuffield Trust, suggested that the government should develop alternative models for general practice.

Our good news story this week is about patient access to general practice.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower and deputy editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

Government commits to talks on major new GP contract to keep 2025/26 deal on track

What does NHS England's abolition mean for general practice?

Two GPs named in revamped NHS executive team

Government 'should develop alternative GP models' amid rapid decline in partners

Map: Which areas are performing best on the government's GP access benchmark?

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This week Emma speaks to Dr Iain Morrison, chair of the BMA Scotland GP committee Scotland, about the critical challenges facing general practice in Scotland.

In this conversation Iain explains some of the challenges general practice in Scotland is facing as a result of problems with the 2018 GP contract, the impact of underfunding, and the growing crisis in the GP job market.

He explains what needs to happen to address these issues and the prospect of GPs in Scotland taking industrial action in the coming year unless the government takes steps to increase funding – and discusses why GP practices should adopt the BMA safe working guidance.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

BMA safe workload guidance for GPs in Scotland

'Devastated' practices lay off staff after five-figure premises cost hike - GPonline story about the premises problems facing practices in Lothian

GP practices in Scotland promised £10.5m to boost capacity

Scottish GPs call for national fix to help IMG doctors secure visas

Two thirds of Scottish GPs ready to disrupt services through industrial action

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This week Emma and Nick look at the GP contract deal for England for 2025/26.

They discuss what exactly is in the deal and what it means for GP practices in the year ahead, in particular what it could mean for practice finances and whether changes to the additional roles reimbursement scheme will address the GP jobs crisis.

They also talk about what happens now with collective action and the BMA’s push for more significant contract reform in the coming years.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower and deputy editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

• Read all of our GP contract coverage here
• What's in the GP contract for 2025/26?
• Early-career GPs spell out how a new contract can secure their future
• What does the pause in collective action really mean for GPs?

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This week Emma speaks to Dr John Ford and GP Dr Liam Loftus from the Health Equity Evidence Centre at Queen Mary University in London about health inequalities and how frontline clinicians, system leaders and policymakers can make evidence-based decisions to tackle inequality in healthcare.

John and Liam discuss how the Health Equity Evidence Centre is making the evidence on what works when it comes to addressing health inequalities more accessible.

The centre uses machine learning to analyse the vast amount of research and literature that’s available and the team at the centre turns that information into actionable insights for GPs, other frontline clinicians, healthcare managers and policymakers.

John and Liam explain how this all works in practice, the resources they have available and how this can help GPs, practices and primary care networks in their day to day work. They also talk about projects they are currently working on, including how GP funding inequalities can be addressed, and how they hope to establish a solid evidence base for what works when it comes to tackling health inequalities.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

Health Equity Evidence Centre

Outdated GP funding formula leaves practices in deprived areas with 10% less funding

Talking General Practice episode with Dr Becks Fisher from the Nuffield Trust on - How can we make GP funding fairer?

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This week the team talks about the GP jobs’ crisis after the BMA held a virtual rally last week to help the union shape its plans for how to address the job shortage facing salaried and locum GPs. They also explain the findings from GPonline’s own survey of locum GPs that shows the impact this has had on rates of pay and the finances and wellbeing of those doctors affected.

And they discuss GP premises following a report published last week by the NHS Confederation that suggested NHS Property Services, which owns a significant number of GP premises, should be scrapped.

Our good news story this week is about practices in the north West which have received extra funding to help them develop research hubs.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower, deputy editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Kimberley Hackett. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

BMA reveals 'vital' GP contract priorities that could solve jobs crisis

Most locum GPs struggling to find work as jobs crisis devastates income

Registrars delaying GP qualification because they can’t find jobs, says LMC

New GPs are being 'muscled out' of the NHS, warns registrars leader

Government should abolish NHSPS and pay off GP service charges, report suggests

GP practices share nearly £1m fund to expand research hubs

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This week Emma speaks to GP and researcher Dr Rebecca Payne about what general practice can learn from the research she’s been involved with on remote patient care.

In this conversation Rebecca talks about her research into patient safety in remote consultations, what GPs can do to ensure remote consultations are safe and lessons for practices about the systems that they need to have in place. She also talks about the wider implications of this research including what it means for training and education.

Rebecca also explains her research into how the shift to remote care has impacted on quality in primary care, what this could mean for the future of general practice - and what she hopes policymakers will take from the findings.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

Patient safety in remote primary care encounters: multimethod qualitative study combining Safety I and Safety II analysis, published in BMJ Quality and Safety

Teaching patient safety in remote consultations

Project resources from the Remote by Default study including competencies for staff and advice for patients

How to ensure safe remote consultations in your practice - from GPonline

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In this week’s episode the GPonline team discusses the future of the Targeted Enhanced Recruitment Scheme (TERS) – an initiative to attract GPs to underdoctored parts of England – amid fears it could be scrapped.  

They also look at what we know about the current GP contract negotiations in England and what could happen at next month's special LMCs conference, which now looks set to be a referendum on the deal for 2025/26.

Plus, they talk about NHS England's planning guidance for the year ahead and what it had to say about general practice. Our good news story this week is about the contract deal that has been struck for general practice in Wales.

This episode is presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower and deputy editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

Scheme to boost GP recruitment in underdoctored areas could be cut from April

Special conference could push for industrial action or mass resignation threat

GP anxiety 'rife' as partnerships face 2025/26 contract crunch

GP access among priorities in 'reset year' for NHS as officials hint at new targets

'Complacent' health officials lack ideas to save NHS, MPs warn

GPs in Wales accept improved £52m contract boost for 2024/25

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This week Emma speaks to Ruth Rankine, director of primary care at the NHS Confederation, about how to create a neighbourhood NHS and the role general practice will play.

A key plank of the government’s plans is a move towards a neighbourhood NHS with more care provided outside hospital and in the community, but what does this mean in practice? ICBs are already working to set up integrated neighbourhood teams, but as yet there is no clear definition of what these teams should look like.

In this conversation Ruth explains how this work is going, how the NHS will need to change if it is going to deliver more services in primary care, and the importance of allowing local areas the flexibility to redesign care in a way that meets the needs of their population.

She also talks about how the GP contract may need to change in future to deliver this vision, the important role primary care networks have to play and the opportunities to create new pathways involving GPs with extended roles.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

GP contract and funding reform key steps towards 'neighbourhood NHS'

NHS Confederation Primary Care Network

NHS Confederation report - The case for neighbourhood health and care

What do GPs want from the 10-year NHS plan?

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The government is aiming to create 1,000 new GP jobs through the additional roles reimbursement scheme (ARRS), but are they on track to hit this target before the end of March? Nick and Emma discuss what we know about how the scheme is going.

They also talk about a report from the Nuffield Trust, which shows how the ARRS more widely has changed the make-up of the workforce in general practice and argues that the introduction of new roles to the NHS has not been backed by enough planning and support - particularly on issues such as training, regulation and supervision.

And they discuss some of the problems the CQC is facing and how this is potentially impacting on GP practices.

Our good news story is about a change in RCGP policy for exam resits for GP registrars who are disabled.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower, deputy editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Kimberley Hackett. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

Some PCNs yet to claim any ARRS GP funding, NHS England admits

GPs outnumbered almost 3:1 after 'stark' reshaping of workforce through ARRS

Long waits for CQC reports 'risk damaging GP practices'

GPs entitled to follow advice on PAs that could lead to redundancies, says BMA

Take part in our GP locum rates survey here https://surveys.haymarket.com/s3/Locum-rates-survey-2025

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