Improving patient outcomes and delivering future ambitions
Across England GP practices forming Primary Care Networks to cover small population groups. These Networks improve services and work with other health and community services.
Covid Impacting Primary Care
Networks are built around people and where they live, this helps reducing health inequalities in deprived areas. NHS England and Improvement place high expectations upon the Primary Care Networks to form the foundation for Integrated Care Systems. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Networks have strengthened how they work with organisations. Many now urge to capitalise upon this and to sustain the improved communication, working styles and patient outcomes.
“Driving cost efficiencies is no longer at the top of the sustainability agenda”
Pre-COVID, the Institute of Health Equity concluded that health is getting worse. People living in deprived areas suffer the greatest health inequalities. This is bad the population as a whole.
COVID has shifted the attention towards ‘preventing’ individuals from getting unwell and ‘personalised care’. This promotes independent living, resilience and more care in the community.
The pandemic forced our health and social care colleagues to pause routine activities. Such activities are now addressed as the UK begins to plan its recovery and ‘re-set’.
Mental health
The pandemic increased mental health challenges, anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Diagram 1 illustrates shows how this may develop long-term in wave 4.
Primary care services provide a significant proportion of mental health support already. Networks have become even more important in future approaches to develop mental health support.
Diagram 1. Potential Impact from the COVID 19 Pandemic
Source:Victor Tseng, Pulmonary & Critical Care Physician, USA
Digital Transformation
COVID accelerates the pace of digital transformation across health care. As a result, 77% of GP consultations switched to on-line or telephone consultations (RCGP, 2020). Certain hospital care specialities saw a similar uptake for outpatient consultations.
Digital health capabilities and artificial intelligence applications further advance health care. It increases speed, the accuracy of diagnosis, personalised treatment, education, increased options to access treatments.
Digital technologies complement and add value to care for clinicians and patients alike. Patients have easier access to services and it enables clinicians to use their time better. (Roland S. Et al., 2020)
Workforce
Clinical directors need support to deal with the pandemic ‘re-set’. Anticipating that future peaks, combined with winter pressures will increase workloads. For the smaller Networks much of management has fallen to the clinical directors.
“Invest in resources to free up Clinicians”
The People Plan 2020/21 prioritises primary care workforce. NHS England and Improvement capitalise on their funding allocation to support workforce expansion. The ‘Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme’ fund 10 new roles and the Investment and Impact Fund is said to be launched in October 2020. This investment will help ease workload pressures and support integration across the ‘system’.
Optimistic outlook
Networks are taking advantage of digital transformation enabling clinicians and resources challenges. Exploiting digital apps, smart devices, and advancements to diagnostics, to name a few. COVID19 brings an optimistic outlook and refocuses services. This will improve patient outcomes and delivery of the NHS future ambitions.