Report of the Head of Primary Care, Manchester Health and Care Commissioning

This report provides an update on the current position in relation to access to General Practice in Manchester.

The Committee considered the report of Head of Primary Care, Manchester Health and Care Commissioning (MHCC) that provided information on the current position in relation to access to General Practice (GP) in Manchester.

Key points and themes in the report included:

·                The impact the COVID-19 pandemic had had on access to primary care and the modifications that had been put in place to continue to provide access to General Practice in Manchester;

·                New ways of working, including the digital transformation programme;

·                Plans that were underway to support the recovery of General Practice including improving access and reducing barriers patients face when accessing General Practice; and

·                An update on the GP Patient Survey for 2021.

The Medical Director, MHCC provided the Committee with the current figures on the numbers of appointments delivered with the conclusion that the key message was that Primary Care was open for business.

The Information and Communication Officer, Healthwatch Manchester advised the Committee that they had surveyed the information that was available to residents on Practice’s website and commented that they had found that this information was not easily accessible and there was a disparity in the length of time patients were expected to have to wait for an appointment.

Some of the key points that arose from the Committee’s discussions were: -

·                Noting the importance of online patient information being available in a range of languages and formats;

·                Consideration needed to be given to the use of the term ‘The Elderly’ as it was not an appropriate term;

·                The need to recognise that not all people could use technology and face to face appointments provided an opportunity to assess a patient’s body language and understand, particularly if a patient was presenting with mental health issues; and

·                Noting the reported 85 GP practices across Manchester was there a maximum capacity / register for these and was there any additional provision for under provided areas.  

The Medical Director, MHCC stated that she had maintained strong relationships with her patients despite the pandemic, however commented that as a result of the need to wear full PPE (personal protective equipment) and stripped down consultation rooms meant that the patient experience of a face to face appointment was very different currently. In response to the comment regarding a patient’s ability to navigate IT systems she stated that it would be wrong to make assumptions, however accepted that a one-size fits all approach was not appropriate. She further added that the telephone triage system was useful to sign post patients to the correct health professional for care, adding that this was not always a GP. 

The Head of Primary Care, MHCC stated that in response to a growing population in the city, more GPs and Primary Care Health Workers needed to be recruited and the estates strategy, working collaboratively with the Primary Care Network were working to meet the needs of a growing population. In response to the comments made by Healthwatch she stated that a workstream had been developed to look at the ways in which access to Primary Care could be improved, noting that this included reviewing the information that was provided online and on Practice answer machines. She stated that they remained committed to working with Healthwatch to address the issue of variation in access. The Clinical Director and Chair of Manchester GP Forum reiterated this commitment to improving access, adding that COVID-19 had placed additional pressures on GPs.

The Executive Member for Health and Care thanked all of GPs across the city for all their continued dedication in supporting the residents of Manchester during the pandemic. She stated that this gratitude needed to be extended to all staff working in GP practices, in particular,  receptionists who had experienced increased abuse from callers. She stated that more needed to be done to dispel the many negative and demoralising media comments regarding GPs and the service they provide. 

Decision

The Committee note the report.