Primary Care Bulletin - today's round-up

17 February 2022

Dear colleagues,

It was announced earlier this week that over 31 million people have now received their COVID-19 booster jab, preventing over 105,000 hospitalisations since mid-December, according to UKHSA estimates. Primary care teams have contributed significantly to this 31 million achievement, and we are continually grateful to our general practice and community pharmacy teams for their tireless efforts to protect our patients.  

Yesterday, the Government accepted advice from the JCVI to make a non-urgent offer of COVID-19 vaccines to all children aged five to 11 in England, in order to increase protection against potential future waves of COVID-19. We will prepare to extend this offer to all children during April 2022. Vaccinations have already been offered to at-risk children and those who live with immunosuppressed people in this age group. Guidance will be shared in due course.

Today, we have published a letter to trusts and systems about My Planned Care patient platform which is due to go live on 24 February 2022. This will give patients the opportunity to see, by acute trust, information specific to a range of conditions to enable a better understanding of supporting their own health while on the waiting list along with waiting list information to enable people to better understand how long they may be waiting. Regions will continue to work with trusts to populate the platform with local support offers over the next month.

Take care,

Nikki and Ursula

COVID-19 updates

Digital NHS COVID Pass available to children aged 12 to 15

GPs are reminded that children can get an NHS Login in order to generate a digital COVID Pass via the NHS App or nhs.uk without the need to contact general practice. 

The NHS COVID Pass service for 12 to 15 year olds went live in early February, and it is accessible via nhs.uk for those aged 12 and over, and the NHS App for those aged 13 and over.

In addition to providing access to the NHS COVID Pass, the NHS App will allow 13 to 15 year olds to access other non-personalised services such as Health A-Z, organ donation and 111 online.

Children can access their digital NHS COVID Pass without needing to undergo a Gillick competency assessment with a medical professional. However, the NHS App will withhold children’s other medical data unless an assessment has been undertaken. Patients can find out more on the NHS website or by calling 119.

COVID-19 treatment policy update – a reminder

On the 10 February, both the updated UK COVID-19 treatment policy for non-hospitalised patients and that for neutralising monoclonal antibody and intravenous antiviral treatment of COVID-19 in hospitalised patients came into effect.

Non-hospitalised patients can now confirm they have COVID-19 with a PCR or lateral flow test (LFT; registered via gov.uk or 119) but those using a LFT result to access treatments must continue to use a PCR to support ongoing surveillance of COVID-19. Further information for clinicians is available.

Coronavirus Act 2020 – temporary NHS Pension Scheme rules

On 15 February, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) began its consultation on proposals to extend the temporary pension rules currently provided by Section 45 of the Coronavirus Act 2020. The consultation asks for feedback on the case for continuing the temporary pension rules from 24 March 2022 to 31 October 2022, and extending the rules beyond 31 October 2022.

We encourage colleagues to respond to the consultation with their views on any impact withdrawing the rules this March could have on recovery plans. The consultation will only take a few minutes to complete and will end at 23.45 on 1 March 2022. You can respond online or email the pension consultation team.

COVID-19 Vaccination Programme – workspace

General practice

Changes to procedure for National Medical Examiners

The Coronavirus Act 2020, which introduced easements to death certification processes and cremation forms, expires at midnight on 24 March 2022. Some changes have been retained on a permanent basis through other measures, and other processes revert to previous practice. The following provisions are continuing after 24 March 2022:

• The period before death within which a doctor completing a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) must have seen a deceased patient will remain 28 days (prior to the coronavirus pandemic, the limit was 14 days).
• It will still be acceptable for medical practitioners to send MCCDs to registrars electronically.
• The government’s intention is that the form Cremation 5 will not be re-introduced after the Coronavirus Act expires.

The following emergency provisions are changing with the expiry of the Coronavirus Act on 24 March 2022:

• The provision temporarily allowing any medical practitioner to complete the MCCD, introduced as a temporary measure by the Coronavirus Act, will be discontinued.
• Informants will have to register deaths in person, not remotely.

Annual health checks for people with a learning disability

A huge thank you to colleagues in primary care for all your hard work in delivering annual health checks for people with a learning disability. We know that a lot of this work is taking place now and would ask that you to continue to invite people on the learning disability register for their annual health check. This easy read letter, which has been developed with people with lived experience, can be adapted to help explain to people with a learning disability and their family and carers that the way health checks are carried out may have changed due to the pandemic.

Recording patient communication and accessibility requirements – a reminder

Please can we remind you that it is important to capture patient communication and accessibility requirements within GP records. Most GP systems are able to record these requirements. These requirements play an essential role in ensuring effective patient communication within individual practices, as well as at national level.  Recording this information is also one of the requirements of the NHS England and NHS Improvement Accessible Information Standard (AIS), which sets out a specific and consistent approach to identifying, recording, flagging, sharing and meeting the information and communication support needs of patients. Further information explains how these needs can be recorded.

Over the coming months we will be reviewing the AIS and considering how the standard is implemented. Any feedback about the AIS is welcomed.

Getting ready for patients to have access to their GP health records

Patients with online accounts, such as through the NHS App, will be able to see new entries in their GP health records. This includes patients whose practices use TPP and EMIS systems.

Over the past months we've held webinars for practice staff explaining what the change means. Places are still available on webinars, and we encourage you to book onto one now.

Practice teams will wish to consider how they implement these changes, including the safeguarding considerations. We are working with safeguarding leads and the RCGP on this including on supporting resources, and we have updated our website with further information. If you have additional questions, please email us at england.NHSXimplementation@nhs.net.

GP mythbuster 106: Primary care first contact practitioners (FCPs)

The CQC GP mythbuster 106: Primary care first contact practitioners (FCPs) has now been published supporting the Health Education England Roadmaps to practice for the five AHP professions (Physiotherapists, OTs, Dietitians, Podiatrists and Paramedics) moving into primary care to be proof of capability.

Within the document, the CQC outline their expectations regarding training, clinical supervision, job plans, induction, complaints and significant events and safe employment for FCPs. An FCP is any AHP clinician in primary care who is required to work at masters level clinically (clinically advanced).

General practice - latest updates

Community pharmacy

Resources for Better Health Quit Smoking Health Campaign 2022

The Better Health Quit Smoking campaign is scheduled to run from 28 February 2022. This campaign forms part of the mandated health campaigns agreed for 2021-2022 by our organisation and the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC).

Community pharmacies will receive printed resources, from the Office for Health Improvement & Disparities, via Yodel between 24 - 28 February 2022. These are to be used as soon as they are received, up until 31 March 2022. The resource packs will include a briefing sheet to support conversations with patients and display materials and social media and digital resources will also be available on the Campaign Resource Centre.

If you have not received your pack by 1 March 2022, please email the team with ‘Quit Smoking Pharmacy Packs’ in the subject line and your pharmacy name and full address in the email.

Dentistry

Reminder: Patients must sign NHS dental forms

Dental practices have a responsibility to collect patient signatures and accurately record patients’ exemptions from NHS charges. This means any time a patient claims that they are entitled to free or reduced cost NHS dental treatment, please ensure you ask them, or their representative, to produce evidence of their eligibility, complete the reason for exemption on form FP17PR and read and sign the declaration on form FP17PR before treatment begins.

It’s important you ask patients to check the form FP17PR, before they sign the declaration. They are responsible for making sure the information is correct and that their exemption is valid on the date that the course of treatment started to avoid a penalty charge. Read more about patient exemption checking.

Your NHS dentistry and oral health update

The latest NHS dentistry and oral health update is available to read online.

Primary care

Sites confirmed for first wave of the Core20PLUS Connectors programme

Thank you to all sites who submitted expressions of interest (EOIs) to implement local, community based initiatives to support the reduction of healthcare inequalities as part of the Core20PLUS Connectors programme. A panel, including members of Voluntary Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) organisations and partners with lived experience of healthcare inequalities, reviewed the 26 submissions received and 11 have been selected for Wave 1 of the programme.

The chosen initiatives are spread across all seven regions and encompass the five clinical priority areas outlined in the Core20PLUS5 approach, targeting a variety of different communities and geographies. The programme is due to commence in March 2022, with approval pending for a second wave from April 2022. Further information to follow.

DHSC: 10-Year Cancer Plan: Call for Evidence

DHSC is seeking the views of individuals, professionals and organisations to understand whether and how we can do more to make progress against the ambition to save thousands more lives each year by dramatically improving how we diagnose and treat cancer, and to build on lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The call for evidence will run for a period of 8 weeks and is open to everyone aged 16 and over. You can respond as an individual, or on behalf of an organisation. An easy-read version of this document will be made available in online and print format shortly.

Get involved: We’re scoping a national training and development programme for practice and PCN managers

Together with NHS South Central and West, we are working in collaboration with practice and PCN managers, representative bodies, training providers and other key regional and national stakeholders to scope a national training and development programme for practice and PCN managers. We’re encouraging eligible colleagues to get involved and share their views via the survey and workshops. Please share widely and contact the team for further details.

Book your place: Compassionate conversations training

Places are now available for staff working in patient-facing, non-clinical roles to take part in a new training opportunity, upskilling colleagues to handle difficult situations with compassion. This training is open to those working across primary care and can be delivered on a training afternoon at Primary Care Network level. Please contact the NHS People Team to find out more and to sign up.

Upcoming awareness campaigns

Campaign to raise awareness of sexual assault referral centres

We have launched a new campaign to raise awareness of sexual assault referral centres (SARCs) - specialist NHS services that offer specialist practical, medical and emotional support 24/7 to anyone who has been raped, sexually assaulted or abused.

A letter has been sent to colleagues asking for their support with the delivery of this campaign, to ensure that anyone who has experienced sexual assault and abuse, regardless of how long ago, knows where to get help.

SARCs are located across the country and are here for everyone, regardless of when an incident happened. Visit www.nhs.uk/SARCs to find your nearest service. The campaign toolkit, which includes posters and social media assets, can be accessed online.

To learn more about sexual assault and abuse, staff can also undertake the Health Education England’s Identifying and Responding to Sexual Assault and Programme e-learning course.

Heart attack campaign

A new ‘Help Us Help You’ campaign launched this week and is raising awareness of heart attack symptoms. The early signs of a heart attack can vary, the most common include squeezing across the chest and a feeling of unease. The campaign highlights that it can be  easy to dismiss the early signs of a heart attack but it’s never too early to call 999 and describe your symptoms. The campaign will run across catch up TV, radio, paid social, PR, partnerships, and multicultural communications for six weeks.

Cervical screening

The NHS Cervical Screening Programme is now live. The campaign asks women and people with a cervix aged 25-64 not to ignore their invitation and to book an appointment. GP practices may see increased demand from patients for NHS Cervical Screening sample taking. Communications resources to support the campaign will be available through the Campaign Resource Centre.

Upcoming events and webinars

Various dates – Getting ready for patients to have access to their future data. For GPs / operational staff and primary care commissioners.

24 February, 1pm- 2.30pm. Learning Disability Project: Structured medication reviews – next steps

2 March, 12pm – 1.15pm. COVID-19 Vaccination in Pregnancy: Masterclass for midwives

2 March, 1.30pm – 2.30pm. SPLW Series: Developing your SPLW workforce

2 March, 2pm – 3pm. PCC support - open dental contracting surgeries

3 March, 1.30pm – 3pm. Vaccinating the under 30s from underserved communities

8 March, 12pm – 1pm. Implementing the latest Lipid Management Pathway – a clinical perspective

8 March, 5pm – 6pm. Dermatology Transformation Webinar

15 March, 10 – 11.30am. Personal health budget community of practice. This session will focus on step six of the implementation framework - monitoring, review and evaluation.

16 March, 1.30 – 2.30pm. Volunteer befriending, creating connection

22 March, 5pm – 6pm. Dermatology Transformation Webinar

30 March, 1.30pm – 2.30pm. Social Prescribing Data processes/Evidence and impact

Link of the Week

Book your ticket to NHS ConfedExpo (15-16 June 2022)