SWGP has welcomed early commitments from the new Health and Social Care Secretary, Wes Streeting, to increase the proportion of NHS resources going to primary care. The comments were made at a visit to a GP practice in London within days of the new government taking office.
SWGP is already working in partnership with member practices and system partners to deliver more services to patients with their communities. A good example of this is the Primary Care Gynaecology Service we provide in partnership with Federation colleagues across the system on behalf of Coventry & Warwickshire Integrated Care Board. This service enables patients to be treated for routine gynaecology conditions closer to home at GP ‘hubs’ across Coventry and Warwickshire. Patients are being seen by specially trained GPs within two months, instead of joining lengthy hospital waiting lists. This also frees up time for our colleagues in secondary care to be able to focus on more urgent or complex referrals.
Partnership working is helping to strengthen services within primary care, while the addition of specialist roles such as clinical pharmacists, physiotherapists and social prescribers is helping to spread the clinical workload so that practices can support more patients more quickly.
Chair of SWGP Federation, Cristina Ramos, said: “Both in my role as a GP and as chair of South Warwickshire GP Federation, I’ve seen first-hand the positive role primary care can play in providing more services in local communities. Clearly there are challenges ahead, but early recognition of the potential role primary care can play in delivering a better ‘front door’ experience for the NHS, with the right level of resources, feels like a positive first step.”