24 November 2020

Dear colleagues,

COVID-19 vaccination sites  

Thank you to all the PCNs who nominated a site to deliver COVID-19 vaccinations as part of the forthcoming NHS programme. We have had a fantastic response from general practice. We know general practice is already busy and we are hugely grateful for your commitment to ensuring your patients are vaccinated as soon as possible. We are writing out to all the sites who came forward with next steps. We will be holding a webinar on Thursday 26 November at 5pm where we will share further information about the programme.

With the important work taking place around the national COVID-19 vaccination programme, Dr Nikki Kanani and Ed Waller will be working full-time in this area to ensure the workforce is prepared to assume their key role. We will be taking over the bulletin for the time being and continue to keep you up to date on all things primary care.

Raj and Ali

COVID-19 updates and guidance

COVID-19 vaccination programme FAQs updated

A reminder that we have a dedicated space on our FutureNHS web platform for the national rollout of the vaccination programme. Log in or sign up to find key documents, a discussion forum and upcoming and previous webinars.

We’ve now added some useful FAQs to the space, with the most up to date answers to common questions around eligible cohorts, appointment bookings, preparation for the vaccinations and more.   

National post-COVID recovery guidance

Two guidance documents were published earlier this month to assist local healthcare systems to establish their post-COVID recovery services. National guidance for post-COVID assessment clinics and Your COVID Recovery guidance (for the online rehabilitation platform) are available on the NHS England website. The clinics and Your COVID Recovery are two elements of the NHS five-part package of support for patients experiencing long-term health effects following COVID-19 infection.

For more information on post-COVID rehabilitation and recovery, please email england.clinicalpolicy@nhs.net.

Updated advice for people who are Clinically Extremely Vulnerable

With the current national restrictions expected to change from 3 December, we understand that the Government will also update the associated advice for people who are Clinically Extremely Vulnerable. We expect the Government to again write to people on the Shielded Patient List (SPL) to advise them of the change of guidance. Where a patient’s email address is recorded in their GP records, they will receive this letter electronically as soon as it is available. This could be as early as Wednesday 25 November. Patients receiving an email copy will still receive a hard copy by post in the following days. When adding individuals to the SPL, please check that patient contact details, including email addresses, are up to date. We will include further information in a subsequent bulletin when available.

Cardiovascular disease prevention guide to support primary care during COVID-19

A new practical guide will help primary care teams overcome limitations created by COVID-19 and continue to deliver quality cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention services.

Since the pandemic, patients are likely to have had less contact with healthcare professionals, leading to lower detection rates for CVD risk factors such as hypertension and atrial fibrillation. Symptoms of stroke, TIA or heart attack may also have gone unreported. At the same time, primary care teams have had to rapidly shift to remote working.

The new guidance – produced in a collaboration between the Oxford Academic Health Science Network (Oxford AHSN) and the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme – is co-authored with the Primary Care Cardiovascular Society (PCCS) and aims to signpost primary care professionals to the right resources to address these and related issues. It has been put together by a wide-ranging team of national experts and includes experience from the NHS primary care frontline.

Homecare workers to be tested weekly for COVID-19

Care workers looking after people in their own homes will be offered weekly coronavirus tests from Monday 23 November, the Government announced. Those working for CQC registered providers will receive weekly PCR tests to use at home, which will help identify more asymptomatic cases and protect care users most vulnerable to the virus. Regular testing will give workers peace of mind by picking up on any asymptomatic cases and providing even greater protection for those they care for.

General practice 

Primary Care support is needed to boost recruitment into community based COVID research study

The UK led PRINCIPLE study is evaluating whether early treatment in the community speeds up recovery and reduces the need for hospitalisation. The innovative study design enables people from anywhere in the UK to register and participate in the trial entirely remotely. 2,000 participants have been recruited so far but many more are needed. PRINCIPLE calls on the support of general practice to help identify potential participants, aged 50 and over with symptoms of COVID-19, and direct them to self-screen via the website to join the study.

General practice - latest updates

Primary care

Updated DHSC guidance on accessing government-secured flu vaccines

Further to Friday’s Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announcement about the extension of the flu vaccination programme to 50 to 64 year olds from 1 December, DHSC has issued updated guidance to general practices and community pharmacies on accessing additional centrally supplied vaccines.

Community CPR in the COVID-19 world

Developed in partnership between the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Resuscitation Council UK, this webinar considers how cardiopulmonary resuscitation should be conducted in a community setting by healthcare professionals. 

NHS Confed: PCN Network virtual conference session recordings

If you missed any sessions at the NHS Confederation PCN Network’s annual conference on 11 November 2020, you can now access the recordings, including a keynote speech by Lord Victor Adebowale on tackling health inequalities, a Q&A and a ‘think in’ with expert panels and a number of break-out sessions. Delegates who have already registered can log into the event platform, while those who did not get a chance should email eventbookings@nhsconfed.org.

Support for pregnant women and people with a learning disability with diabetes

Around 2,000 pregnant women with Type 1 diabetes will be able to access a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) for 12 months, which automatically alerts users if their blood sugar is high to help them control their diabetes throughout their pregnancy. Additionally, in a major expansion of the Flash Glucose Monitor (Flash) rollout, people with a learning disability will also now be eligible for Flash to help manage any type of diabetes, provided they use insulin to treat their condition. Flash works in a similar way to CGM except users check their own blood sugar levels using a mobile app.

National research has shown use of the devices can improve glucose control, wellbeing and reduction in hospital admissions. Find out more.

Launch of new Cancer Quality of Life survey

NHS England and NHS Improvement is committed to improving quality of life as part of our pledge to understand and act on what matters to patients. We are launching a nationwide Cancer Quality of Life Survey to help us understand how best to support people living with cancer.

From December, patients with breast, prostate or colorectal cancer in England will be invited to complete the survey 18-months after their diagnosis. We want to increase awareness of the survey in primary, community and secondary care providers, and with commissioners. We want to encourage as many people as possible to take part.

Dates for your diary

Wednesday 25 November, 2pm - 3pm. Harnessing health and housing support to improve population health

Thursday 26 November, 5pm - 6pm. General Practice webinar with Nikki Kanani and Ali Sparke. To attend please ensure you register by 4pm on 26 November.

NHS Volunteer Responder programme update webinars

• Thursday 26 November, 10.30 - 11.30am - Join Microsoft Teams Meeting
• Thursday 10 December, 10.30 - 11.30am - Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

Wednesday 2 December, 1pm – 2pm. Digital Nurse Network Webinar

Link of the day

Writer and broadcaster Gyles Brandreth reads a poem about one of Nikki Kanani’s PCN clinics, written by one of their patients!