Talking General Practice

Our regular news review is back. This week Emma and Nick talk about soaring energy costs and rising inflation and the impact these could have on GP practices

They also look at what new prime minister Liz Truss and new health and social care secretary Therese Coffey could mean for general practice – and whether the government could prevent a possible crisis in the health service this winter.

And in our regular good news spot they highlight an initiative from a group of GP trainees that puts forward a blueprint for tackling the crisis in general practice.

This episode is presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by our news editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     Practices could cut staff, stop COVID-19 jabs or hand back contracts as energy bills rocket

●     GP practices 'being mugged' as profits set to slump by a third

●     What does a Liz Truss premiership mean for general practice?

●     Therese Coffey rules out GP visit fees and promises to 'stand up for patients' on access

●     Nine in ten GPs fear their practice will struggle to cope this winter

●     GP trainees set out vision to lift general practice from crisis

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Throughout August we’ve been showcasing some of the best interviews from series one of the podcast.

This week Emma talks to Dr Rebecca Rosen, a GP in London and senior fellow at health think tank the Nuffield Trust, about continuity of care, the evidence to support it and steps practices can take to embed continuity of care in the way they work. This interview was recorded in October 2021.

Since this was recorded we’ve written quite a lot about continuity of care on GPonline. The House of Commons Health and Social Care Committee is currently running an inquiry into the future of general practice and the benefits of continuity of care and what the NHS can do to promote continuity have been one of its themes. Dr Rosen gave evidence to the committee about the work she’s done in her practice.

The RCGP has also stepped up efforts to promote what it calls relationship-based care and highlight its importance in general practice. The college has produced a new report looking at what’s needed to help practices deliver relationship-based care and continuity (link below).

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

Series 3 of Talking General Practice begins on 9 September.

Useful links

RCGP work on relationship-based care

GP crisis endangering continuity and quality of patient care, warns RCGP chair

GP access debate must shift to emphasise quality as well as speed, warns RCGP

Improving access and continuity in general practice - a 2018 Nuffield Trust report

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Throughout August we’re showcasing some of the best interviews from series one of the podcast.

This week Emma speaks with Dr Carey Lunan, a GP in Edinburgh and chair of the Deep End GP Group in Scotland, and Dr David Blane a GP in Glasgow and clinical research fellow in General Practice, University of Glasgow, who is the academic lead of the Deep End GP Group, in an interview that was recorded in August 2021.

The Deep End Group covers the 100 most deprived practices in Scotland and the discussion highlights what the group is doing to tackle health inequalities, the impact of COVID-19 and what other practices can learn from their work.

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

Series 3 of Talking General Practice begins on 9 September.

Useful links

MIMS Learning free health inequalities webinar featuring Dr Carey Lunan https://www.mimslearning.co.uk/courses/health-inequalities-in-primary-care

The Deep End Project https://www.gla.ac.uk/researchinstitutes/healthwellbeing/research/generalpractice/deepend/

Fair Health https://fairhealth.org.uk/

GP funding formula 'needs reworking' to target inequalities, warns RCGP

Government's slow COVID-19 response worsened health inequalities, warns BMA

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Throughout August we’re showcasing some of the best interviews from series one of the podcast.

This week Emma is talking to GP and menopause expert Dr Louise Newson, in an interview that was recorded in September 2021.

Louise discusses how we can improve menopause care and education for doctors and other health professionals. She also explains how her career led her to becoming one of the UK’s most recognisable experts on the menopause and the new charity - The Menopause Charity - which she launched in 2021.

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

Series 3 of Talking General Practice begins on 9 September.

Useful links

Confidence in the Menopause (free training for healthcare professionals)

The Menopause Charity

Practical advice for GPs on prescribing HRT - an article by Dr Louise Newson and Dr Olivia Jones on GPonline

Our sister site MIMS Learning has the following learning modules on the menopause:

●     Genitourinary syndrome of menopause

●     NICE guidelines on the menopause - by Dr Louise Newson and Dr Rebecca Lewis

●     Menopause and migraine - by Dr Louise Newson

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Throughout August we’re bringing you some of the best interviews from series one of the podcast.

This week, Emma is talking to GP Dr Amy Small about living with long COVID in an interview that was recorded in November 2021.

Amy caught Covid right at the start of the pandemic in March 2020 and went on to develop long COVID. In this conversation she explains how long COVID has affected her life, her family, and her job as a GP - and what she thinks needs to be done to improve services and support for other people affected by the condition.

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

Series 3 of Talking General Practice begins on 9 September.

Useful links

How widespread is long COVID in the UK?

Our sister site MIMS Learning has the following learning resources on long COVID

●     Long COVID - tips for primary care - an on-demand webinar

●     Long COVID and pain management - an on-demand webinar

●     Guidance update: Long COVID assessment and management

●     Neurological aspects of long COVID - an on-demand webinar

A link to the book Dr Amy Small mentions (Amazon) Classic Pacing for a Better Life with ME

Top tips: managing long COVID

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This week Emma speaks with Dr Gemma Wilkinson, a GP in Nottingham and clinical lead for the Nottinghamshire GP Phoenix Programme, a workforce support organisation affiliated to Nottinghamshire LMC.

The GP Phoenix Programme has a range of support programmes that focus on GP retention at every stage of a doctor’s career – from GP training, to newly-qualified GPs, through to mid-career and also those doctors approaching retirement.

In this conversation Gemma explains the steps the GP Phoenix Programme is taking to improve retention, what other areas can learn from their initiatives and what more needs to be done to stop GPs leaving the profession early.

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

This summer

Talking General Practice is taking a break for the summer. During August we will be putting out some of the interviews from the first series of the podcast as stand alone episodes for those of you who may have missed those or started listening to the podcast more recently. They cover some really interesting and important topics, which we think are worth showcasing again.

We’ll be back for series 3 on 9 September. 

Useful links

• GP Phoenix Programme induction materials
• Information for practice managers on employing a new to practice fellow - from the GP Phoenix Programme. And video explaining the same.
• Phoenix GP - a national career development and leadership programme for mid career GPs

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In our fortnightly news review, the team discusses some numbers that Nick’s crunched looking at GP partners across England and which areas are losing partners fastest, as well as some predictions about workforce figures from the Health Foundation

They also talk about latest developments on visa problems facing international medical graduates coming out of GP training, the latest health and social care committee hearing on the future of general practice and explain some PCN concerns about recruiting under the additional roles reimbursement scheme.

And there’s some good news about an award for the NHS in all four UK countries.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by our news editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     Which parts of England are losing GP partners fastest?

●     Government has no plans to scrap GP partnership model, DHSC official tells MPs

●     New primary care minister says general practice is not in crisis

●     RCGP demands 'a job and a future' in the NHS for all IMG GP trainees

●     PCNs 'frightened' to recruit as ARRS delays create six-figure cash shortfall

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This week Emma speaks to practice managers Jo Wadey and Nicola Davies who are also directors of the Institute of General Practice Management (IGPM).

They discuss how and why they set up the IGPM, the institute’s new scheme for accreditation of practice managers and their views about practice managers being excluded from NHS England’s new to partnership scheme.

Jo and Nicola also talk about the importance of good practice management and how the role has changed in recent years, concerns about the number of practice managers leaving the profession and how increased aggressive behaviour from patients has affected practice staff.

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

Useful links

●     IGPM information on practice management accreditation

●     IGPM webinar introducing accreditation (on YouTube)

●     New accreditation programme for practice managers (on GPonline)

●     Campaign launched to tackle 'daily abuse' of GP practice staff (on GPonline)

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This week the team discusses what’s been happening at the BMA’s annual representative meeting this week, including a vote that could determine the future of primary care networks, talk of pay increases and the latest on stamping out sexism in the BMA.

They talk about the GMC reversing a decision to suspend GP Dr Manjula Arora for one month after she said she was promised a laptop by her employers. And they look at the RCGP’s new campaign that sets out the steps the college thinks are needed to address the workload and workforce crisis in general practice, as well as the college’s plan for embedding relationship-based care in GP practices.

Finally, there’s some good news on a community transport service for GP practices in west London.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by our news editor Nick Bostock. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     Doctors tell BMA to pull GP practices out of PCNs by 2023

●     BMA to demand significant pay rises to combat 15 years of real-term cuts

●     Only 55% of Romney review recommendations on BMA sexism fully implemented

●     What solutions to the GP crisis has the RCGP proposed?

●     GP access debate must shift to emphasise quality as well as speed, warns RCGP

●     RCGP relationship-based care document

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This week Emma speaks to RCGP chair Professor Martin Marshall ahead of the college’s annual conference next week.

Professor Marshall talks about the government’s attitude to general practice, how he believes the workforce and workload crisis could be tackled and the impact the backlog of care is having on general practice.

He also discusses the future of the NHS under integrated care systems and his views on primary care networks and whether he feels positive about the future of general practice.

The conversation was recorded just ahead of the college launching its new campaign - which you can read more about from the links below.

GPonline is once again the media partner for the RCGPs annual conference. You can read all the news from the event which takes place from 29 June-1 July 2022 on our website at GPonline.com.

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

Useful links

●     RCGP Fit for the Future document

●     RCGP guidance on long-term conditions and pandemic recovery in primary care

●     RCGP warns 19,000 GPs could quit in 'mass exodus' over next five years

●     What solutions to the GP crisis has the RCGP proposed?

●     Professor Martin Marshall: In my 30 years as a GP the job has never been so tough

●     Coverage from the RCGP conference (available from 29 June)

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