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Thousands of new general practice staff members will be recruited this winter to free up GPs to see more patients, according to new NHS England plans.
It says that over a thousand GP assistants will be recruited to practices from this month to offer more admin support with the roles already proven to reduce the time GPs spend on tasks such as writing letters by more than two-fifths.
GP assistants will be trained to do blood pressure checks, heart rate and blood tests as well as arranging appointments, referrals and follow-up care for patients.
Local areas will also recruit up to 1,250 digital and transformation leads across the country to help improve patient access to primary care. There will be a digital lead in each primary care network (PCN), who can make sure practices are using the latest technology to offer more telephone lines, monitor their call response times or offer support with the NHS app which, from November, will help patients review their test results.
The number of advanced practitioners working in practices will also be doubled to up to 2,500 in England – they are clinical professionals such as pharmacists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists who can offer patients more specialist care within the general practice team.
Dr Amanda Doyle, national director of primary and community care, said: “Giving patients timely and convenient access to GPs and primary care is vital, especially during winter, which is why we are introducing brand new roles and giving GPs more flexibility to create teams that best meet the needs of their local population.
“NHS staff have worked incredibly hard to deliver record numbers of GP appointments for patients, with 11 million more this year so far than the same period last year, and more than four in five people who book an appointment seen within two weeks, including two fifths who are seen on the same day.
“The introduction of GP assistants can reduce the time doctors spend on correspondence by up to 85%, while also carrying out basic clinical tasks such as taking patients’ blood pressure and heart rate, meaning doctors have more time to do what they care about most – treating patients – while digital leads will help practices use the latest technology to manage demand and capacity”.
This is not a solution to the chronic shortage of general practice staff
The decision was welcomed by the Royal College of GPs especially ahead of what promises to be an exceptionally busy winter, but it added that general practice still needs significantly more resource and support to be able to manage growing levels of patient needs.
Chair Professor Martin Marshall said: “The Royal College of GPs has previously argued that supporting the recruitment of GP assistants could be a practical and important step forward in helping to ease the workload pressures on GPs, freeing up more time for those patients with more complex health issues who are most in need of a GP’s medical expertise. It is important that appropriate training is available to support people to take on these largely administrative roles effectively.
“As their title suggests, these roles can assist GPs in delivering high quality care to patients – they are not a substitute for GPs or other clinical staff, and they must not be expected to work beyond their levels of competence. Nor must they be seen as a solution to the chronic shortage of GPs, especially when GPs will be required to oversee their work and are ultimately responsible. It is important that we see further evaluations of the impact of these roles, once they have had sufficient time to bed in.”
He added that they were also keen to see an evaluation of how the role of Digital Transformation leads could help to improve patient access to primary care services. These roles could potentially play a key role in supporting digital improvements for practices and their patients, but this must also be backed by investment into digital infrastructure, alongside efforts to continue to expand the workforce.
“Today’s announcement recognises that NHS pressures are not confined to hospitals and that GP teams desperately need more support if they are to continue giving patients the care they need and deserve,” he added.
“The College will continue to urge the government to deliver a new recruitment and retention strategy that goes beyond the current unmet target of 6,000 GPs pledged by the Conservatives in their election manifesto, for funding for general practice to be returned to 11% of the total health spend and for investment in our IT systems and premises, so that we can spend more time delivering high quality patient care throughout an undoubtedly harsh winter and beyond.”
Case study: Swan Medical Centre, Birmingham
Swan Medical Practice in Birmingham introduced the role of a General Practice Assistant (GPA) at their practice to support GPs with the significant amount of admin they have to complete.
GP, Dr Ubogu said: “Our General Practice Assistant has reduced the amount of time that I have to spend reviewing and actioning patient forms, saving up to 30 minutes per form in some cases, which is valuable time I can now spend with patients in clinic.”
The General Practice Assistant also provides some clinical support within the practice, including running phlebotomy clinics, taking patients’ blood pressure, and performing ECG tests. This allows for patients to get the care they need sooner, as tests can be carried out by another member of the GP team, other than the GP.
Sonia Rai completed her GPA training in October 2021 and then took on the role of GPA at the practice. She commented that: “Training to be a General Practice Assistant is a brilliant opportunity to grow in general practice.”