GPs welcome contract to provide services

Northern Ireland's GP leaders have welcomed the latest deal agreed with the country’s Department of Health to provide general practice services in local communities. The contract, which is negotiated annually between BMA Northern Ireland and the DHSSPS (Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety), includes an investment of £7m, some of which will begin to fund the new ideas proposed by GPs to improve access for patients. These include ensuring pharmacists can be based in GP practices and operated through not-for-profit GP federations. GP federations are a network of 17 collaborative partnerships covering Northern Ireland that each averages about 20 practices and covers approximately 100,000 patients.  The idea was developed by GPs themselves with the primary aim of providing better care and to deliver it in a more responsive way to meet patients’ needs. Practice-based pharmacists represent the first major service to work in GP federations and have been funded by DHSSPS for the next five years.   New ideas BMA NI GPs committee chair Tom Black (pictured above) said: 'The investment put forward in this year's general practice contract is welcome and acknowledges the hard work of GPs, who have come up with new ideas to help address the impact of years of underfunding and inadequate workforce planning. 'Despite this, we are still living with the real threat of GP practices closing as doctors retire and cannot be replaced. 'We are kee...
Source: BMA News - Category: UK Health Source Type: news