Manifesto commitments
Ahead of the General Election next week on 12 December, the BMA has published a summary of what different party manifestos are pledging on health, available here. The page also includes an analysis of how commitments compare to the BMA’s manifesto ‘asks’ and atemplate to email your prospective parliamentary candidates.
GP trainees’ views on the future of General Practice – King’s Fund report
The King’s Fund produced a report this week based on a survey that received responses from 840 GP trainees in England. This repeated a survey they ran in 2016 and 2018. Key findings included:
It was also worth noting that in the 2016 survey, trainees reported they were considering portfolio working at a later stage in their career, but this year they saw an increase in the number of trainees considering it one and five years after qualifying (24 and 51 per cent, up from 18 and 44 per cent in 2016).
Electronic Prescription Service update (England)
The Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) allows prescribers to send prescriptions electronically to a dispenser of the patient's choice. Phase 4 of the EPS is currently being rolled out on TPP SystmOne. Read more here and see the FAQs attached. The GPC IT policy group lead, Anu Rao, has also written a blog about EPS and the other work streams that the group are involved in.
Currently, dispensing practices are unable to use the EPS for medicines dispensed by the practice dispensary. Further information for dispensing practices has been produced by the DDA and found here. We continue to urge NHS England to enable the implementation of EPS for dispensing practices.
PCN conference 2020 (England)
Building on the success of our first conference for PCN clinical directors earlier this year, we are now preparing for a much bigger event next year. This will provide an opportunity to join other PCN leaders and gain insight into what’s happening across England, share best practice and build supportive relationships. The PCN Conference will be on Saturday 8 February, at the ICC Birmingham. It is suitable for clinical directors, PCN leads and those providing supporting management. Learn more and get your early bird discount at www.bma.org.uk/pcn-whats-next
PCN support services – learning and development for clinical directors (England)
The BMA learning and development team provides a bespoke offer of blended learning, focused on the topics crucial to developing your PCN plan and strategy. Learning will equip clinical directors, and those in supporting roles, with strategic planning, workforce planning, and leadership and management skills to help shape the direction of their PCN. Programmes will run from January to April 2020, in Bristol, Leeds and London. Book nowor find out more on our website.
Scottish LMC conference
Read the resolutions from Scottish LMC conference, held last week, here. These, along with the minutes and agenda, are also available here
Home visits (England)
There have been further reports in the media about the vote at the LMC England conference demanding that home visits should be removed from the core contract. The story was covered by the Independent, New Statesman, and a mention in a Daily Mail article about the King’s Fund poll of GP trainees highlighted above.
Disability survey (UK)
To mark International Day of People with Disabilities on 3 December, the BMA would like to know how disability and ill-health affects the careers of doctors and medical students, and the support you receive or would like to receive at work or in study. Take our short survey here. Earlier this year we spoke to deaf-blind medical student Alexandra Adams – read the feature here
National General Practice Profiles: 2019 annual update (England)
Public Health England has published a data tool presenting a range of GP practice-level indicators using the latest available data in the National General Practice Profiles. This tool is designed to support GPs, CCGs and local authorities to commission effective, appropriate healthcare services for their local populations. Users can search for and view data for individual GP practices and compare them with others in CCGs and across England.
Clinical Academic career progression survey
Are you an academic GP? The BMA’s Medical Academic Staff Committee would very much appreciate if you could fill in their short survey about the changes needed to improve diversity and career progression in medical research, education and clinical academia. Take the survey here
Public Health Conference 2020
Public Health Medicine Committee will be holding their Public Health conference on 26 February 2020 at the BMA House London. The underpinning theme of the conference will be ‘21st century public health’ and what that might mean for public health professionals. The conference will include keynote speakers on the issues of climate change and economic inequality. If you are interested in attending or for further information, please contactinfo.phmc@bma.org.uk
Sandy Macara Memorial Lecture
The Public Health Medicine committee is also organising the ‘Macara Lecture 2020’, to be held at the Wales Millennium Centre on 28 January 2020. This address honours the life and work of the former BMA Council Chair Sir Alexander Macara who died in 2012. The Sandy Macara Memorial Address 2020 is being delivered by Professor Ronan Lyons, Professor of Public Health at Swansea University. The subject of the lecture, ‘Big Data and Public Health’, also picks up on the conference theme of twenty first century public health. If you are interested in this event, please contact info.phmc@bma.org.uk
Read the latest GPC newsletter here.
