29.07.16
First stage of GP Forward View funding released
NHS England has released the first stages of funding in an ambitious programme to tackle the problems facing general practice.
The GP Forward View, first announced in April, involves £2.4bn investment in total and is designed to address problems facing GP practices such as pressure on time and resources and shortages of GPs.
NHS England is now releasing the first £16m of the £40m Practice Resilience Programme, which will provide services including specialised IT and HR training, targeted at the practices most in need.
Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, said: “We meant it when we said we would take concrete action to help relieve pressure on GP practices, and today’s funding is just the first instalment. Practices need support, now, and a few weeks on from the GP Forward View we’re getting on with practical action to do so.”
In addition, the first stage of the three-year general practice development programme, worth £30m, has now been launched.
All practices in the country can register interest in taking part in a local Time to Care programme. These involve nine to 12-month courses intended to help GPs better manage their time, which free up an estimated 10% of time.
NHS England is also introducing extra funding to match the rising cost of GP indemnity. This will be introduced in a new Indemnity Support Scheme in April 2017, whilst the Winter Indemnity Scheme will run for a further year.
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “We want the best working conditions for GPs so that they can provide the best service for patients. We have listened to concerns and know that for GPs, paying rising indemnity fees out of their own pockets feels unfair and unsustainable – so are today committing millions to help.”
NHS England and NHS Improvement are also writing to all NHS trusts, foundation trusts and CCGs today to remind them of the new requirements in the NHS standard contract, which are designed to reduce pressure on GPs from hospitals.
These include not automatically asking GPs for re-referrals for did-not-attend outpatient appointments into the care of a GP.
The need for the GP Forward View has been demonstrated recently by figures showing that one in eight GP posts are unfilled and that the number of patients waiting more than two weeks to see a GP could reach nearly 100 million by 2020-21.
Dr Maureen Baker, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “Our immediate priority must be to make sure that the money from the resilience programme is spent in the right way and delivers practical help to practices - and their patients - fast.
“It’s clear there is a long way to go in order to get GPs and their teams the support and resources needed to deliver 90% of all NHS patient contacts in a safe and sustainable way. But the developments announced today promise to make a tangible impact on general practice, and the care we can provide to our patients.”
Mark Spencer, co-chair of the New NHS Alliance, wrote for NHE earlier this year about the GP Forward View.
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