Talking General Practice

This week Talking General Practice takes an in-depth look at the GP workforce. Last week GPonline published a new interactive map, which analyses data to determine which parts of the country are most at risk from an ageing workforce. On the podcast we discuss what all this data tells us about the state of the GP workforce and some of the challenges facing general practice.

We also assess why patient satisfaction with the NHS has reached a 25-year low and what the British Social Attitudes survey, which that figure comes from, had to say about 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

●     Map: Which parts of England are at risk from an ageing GP workforce?

●     One in 10 GP practices at risk of closure due to ageing workforce

●     Map: Where are England's most underdoctored areas?

●     Satisfaction with GP services sinks to 40-year low

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This week Talking General Practice speaks to Dr Pavlo Kolesnyk - a GP and educator in Uzhhorod, a city in the west of Ukraine.

GPonline’s senior reporter Luke Haynes talks to Dr Kolesynk about the impact the war has had on his city, including the arrival of hundreds of thousands of refugees from the east, and how family doctors in Uzhhorod are maintaining primary care services in the face of a severe shortage of medical supplies.

A special thanks to Dr Kolesnyk for managing to find the time to talk to us, despite the additional work and extra pressure he is dealing with at the minute.

To find out how to donate to support Dr Kolesnyk, email [email protected].

This episode was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     Ukraine Medical Help Fund

●     Ukrainian Medical Association of the UK (Facebook page)

●     Medicines Sans Frontieres work in Ukraine

●     Red Cross DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal

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This week the team discusses the launch of a new campaign aimed at rebuilding general practice. They also talk about the House of Commons health and social care select committee’s inquiry into the future of general practice, which held its first evidence session last week. Both of these feature prominent appearances from former health and social care secretary Jeremy Hunt.

They look at how the NHS backlog is impacting on general practice, including the findings of a report from the public accounts committee and the results of a recent GPonline survey.

There’s a quick round-up of COVID-related news and finally, they highlight how the war is affecting GPs in Ukraine.

This episode is presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by news editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Luke Haynes. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

From GPonline

●     GPs unveil blueprint to rebuild general practice backed by former health secretary

●     RCGP and former health secretary call for QOF to be scrapped

●     GP funding formula perpetuates inequality, MPs told

●     'It's unsustainable' - NHS backlog pushing practices to breaking point

●     General practice in Ukraine: 'COVID doesn't seem scary right now'

Other links

●     Rebuild General Practice campaign

●     Ukraine Medical Help Fund

●     Ukrainian Medical Association of the UK

●     Medicines Sans Frontieres work in Ukraine

●     Red Cross DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal

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This week Talking General Practice speaks to Professor Dame Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard.

Dame Helen is the immediate past chair of the RCGP and is currently chair of the National Academy for Social Prescribing and also chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges.

We talk about what the National Academy for Social Prescribing is aiming to do, the evidence to support the use of social prescribing and what’s needed to make social prescribing a success.

We also discuss the work of the AoMRC, what needs to be done to tackle the workforce crisis and whether Dame Helen feels optimistic about the future of general practice.

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

Useful links

●     National Academy for Social Prescribing

●     Academy of Medical Royal Colleges

From GPonline

●     Flagship general practice recruitment scheme ‘at risk of failure’, report finds

●     More than 1,000 GPs urge MPs to back NHS workforce amendment

●     How social prescribing is helping patients in our practices

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The team discusses the new GP contract for 2022/23, which will be imposed on practices after talks between NHS England and the BMA broke down. They highlight what’s in the deal and how GPs have reacted to it.

They also take a look at a new report from the think tank Policy Exchange, which recommends that the GMS contract should be scrapped within a decade, with GPs becoming 'predominantly salaried' within large-scale providers. What’s of particular interest is that this report’s recommendations have been endorsed by health and social care secretary Sajid Javid

They discuss the findings of some new research into the additional roles reimbursement scheme which warns the multi-billion pound initiative is at risk of failure. And take a look at the response of UK doctors to the devastating war in Ukraine.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by news editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Luke Haynes. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     Ukrainian Medical Association of the UK

●     Medicines Sans Frontieres work in Ukraine

●     Red Cross DEC Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal

From GPonline and GP Business

●     What is changing in the GP contract in 2022/23?

●     BMA ‘bitterly disappointed’ as imposed contract forces 9-5 Saturday opening

●     'Are they out to destroy general practice?' - GPs react to imposed contract changes

●     Javid-backed report calls for end of GMS contract within a decade

●     Flagship general practice recruitment scheme ‘at risk of failure’, report finds

●     Details of the Investment and Impact Fund for 2022/23

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GPonline’s senior reporter Luke Haynes speaks to Dr Farzana Hussain a GP and primary care network clinical director in Newham, east London.

Dr Hussain recently announced she is stepping down from her role as clinical director at the end of March. She has been a big advocate for the PCNs since they were introduced in 2019, but issues such as top-down management, endless meetings, and restrictive recruitment rules have led her to resign.

She talks to Luke in more depth about the reasons behind her decision, what she believes the problems facing PCNs are and what needs to happen to bring about real change in general practice.

Produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     ‘We’ve missed a real opportunity with PCNs’: top London GP leaves clinical director role

●     Bureaucratic PCN targets 'no way to commission care', says BMA

●     Exhausted GPs could quit PCN leadership roles amid doubts over funding

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The team takes a closer look at the GP workforce and which parts of England are most under-doctored.

They also look at how primary care networks are faring with recruitment of new staff and why being a clinical director is an increasingly tough job.

And they highlight reaction to the government’s plan for how England will ‘live with COVID’ as well as some updates to the COVID-19 vaccination programme.

Finally there is some good news about GP partners to round things off.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower, who is joined by news editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Luke Haynes. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Talking General Practice is the podcast from GPonline.com.

Useful links

●     Map: Where are England's most underdoctored areas?

●     GPs in England's most underdoctored areas caring for twice as many patients

●     ‘We’ve missed a real opportunity with PCNs’: top London GP leaves clinical director role

●     Multi-billion pound PCN recruitment scheme fails to meet halfway target

●     Golden hello scheme drives surge in new GP partners

●     Most vulnerable to receive additional COVID-19 booster this spring

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This week Talking General Practice speaks to Professor Dame Clare Gerada, president of the Royal College of GPs and medical director of NHS Practitioner Health, the NHS service that looks after doctors and other staff experiencing mental ill health.

Dame Clare explains how she came to set up NHS Practitioner Health, the impact the pandemic has had on GPs’ mental health and what should be done to better support doctors’ wellbeing going forwards.

She also talks about her career, what it was like being a trailblazing female leader in the NHS when she became chair of the college, including the scrutiny she was under on social media, and her current role as RCGP president.

And she offers her thoughts on what could be done to retain GPs and offers advice to aspiring healthcare leaders.

Useful links

●     NHS Practitioner Health

●     Doctors In Distress

●     Where can GPs access help and support if they are struggling to cope?

●     https://www.england.nhs.uk/supporting-our-nhs-people/support-now/

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This week the GPonline team looks at the government’s plan to tackle the backlog of care in the NHS and what it all means for general practice.

They’re also discussing reports that health secretary Sajid Javid has recommended to Boris Johnson that family doctors should be directly employed by hospitals instead of running their own surgeries - a proposal some have said would effectively nationalise GPs.

In other news, they look at what’s going on at the BMA with industrial action and consider why debates about this within the association have echoes of the Romney report into sexism a couple of years ago. And they discuss a new report from the association about racism in the NHS.

There’s also the usual dose of good news to finish off.

This episode was presented by GPonline editor Emma Bower who is joined by news editor Nick Bostock and senior reporter Luke Haynes. It was produced by Czarina Deen.

Useful links

●     No let-up for GPs as Javid says NHS waiting list will grow for two more years

●     Plans to tackle NHS backlog threaten extra pressure on overstretched GPs

●     Exhausted GPs could quit PCN leadership roles amid doubts over funding

●     Fresh questions over BMA culture two years after Romney sexism review

●     BMA's GP leaders failing a profession 'shackled to a contract no longer fit for purpose'

●     NHS leaders have 'heads in sand' over widespread racism, BMA warns

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This week on Talking General Practice, Emma talks to Dr Richard Fieldhouse, a locum GP and chair of the National Association of Sessional GPs, which he set up in 1997 to represent and lobby on behalf of locum and salaried GPs.

Richard discusses how the NHS could make better use of the locum GP workforce, how the pandemic has affected locums and how practices can get the best from their locum GPs, He also highlights the benefits of working in a chambers and offers some advice on developing a portfolio career.

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

Useful links

National Association of Sessional GPs

What locum GPs need to know about the NHS Pension Scheme

Key financial issues for locum GPs

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