New Contracts
Who cares? Well, I used to believe that the good old G.P cared, and I'm sure that many still do, my G.P is brilliant, when you can get an appointment to see him, but the family doctors in the area I work within seem to be really taking full advantage of the perks their new contract offers them. I have, briefly, looked at the new contract and my thoughts were initially 'good for them. They've negotiatiated a good deal here.' Then today I found out that what may be a brilliant deal for them has left the service they offer to their patients lacking. Strange that because the actual wording within the document goes;-
Benefits for patients
The contract would not be credible or supportable if it did not also deliver substantial and demonstrable benefits for patients. Those benefits include:
- allocating resources to practices according to the needs of their patients
- improved quality of care
- evidence-based indicators in the Quality and Outcomes Framework
- better health outcomes
- the Patient Services Guarantee that patients will continue to be offered locally at least the range of services that they currently enjoy under the old contract
- consistent services across the UK
- a wider range of primary care services, delivered near where patients live
- the right to ask to see an individual doctor of their choice
- the use of patient experience questionnaires in the Quality and Outcomes Framework.
How is it then that our local family health providers can decide to stop conducting the routine newborn examination if a woman has had her baby at home or has had an early discharge from hospital? One minute they are happy to attend and ensure that all is well with their newest patient and the next, they have withdrawn their services, so what happened to 'the Patient Services Guarantee that patients will continue to be offered locally at least the range of services that they currently enjoy under the old contract'? Oh, but read further through the document and you find that 'maternity services' come under the additional section so, if they do provide them, they receive extra funding. Should the newborn examination be regarded as maternity service or is it a patient service? Who knows. All I know is that they have successfully decreased their workload, and increased mine, overnight. How's that? Well a few years ago I undertook the study to gain me the qualification which enables me to conduct this examination. Some doctors winge away about how less qualified health professionals are taking over their roles. Sorry, but this is a wonderful example of how some medics are giving away their roles, or using them as a bargaining tool to obtain more monies from an already cash-strapped NHS. Well, no worries because there are 3 midwives within this PCT who hold the qualification, so we can just do them all. What a wonderful cost-saving exercise, don't pay the G.P's, just inform these midwives that, in addition to their already large caseloads, they can now do this as well, but the real bonus is they don't get paid an'incentive' for 'additional services'. Something is going very, very wrong out there.
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IanB / Website (9.8.06 10:32) If it's any consolation; the dentist's profession has been shot to pieces by the "new contract". We spoke to one guy recently who has used all his "units" up and now can do no more NHS work until April next year. Another guy is working flat out doing the NHS-approved bits and refusing all private work just so he can earn a living. You would think they could swap "units" with each other but it appears this is not allowed or feasible. It's a crock of crap. Sigh. |