Manager Practice ADVICE ON EMPLOYING PHYSICIAN


ASSOCIATES A NEW guide to employing physician associates has been published by the Faculty of Physician Associates (FPA) at the Royal College of Physicians (RCP). The guide is intended to enable healthcare providers (including acute hospital trusts, community trusts, and primary care organisations) to understand the role of the physician associate (PA), their scope of practice, and how to employ a PA. It provides advice on: •


the current education and regulatory framework for the profession


• employment and supervision •


• “TELEPHONE FIRST” NO


PANACEA FOR GP WORKLOAD A “TELEPHONE FIRST” system in which GPs speak to all patients to decide whether problems can be resolved over the phone does not necessarily reduce workload, nor is there evidence it saves money, according to a study published in the BMJ. Researchers from the Cambridge Centre for Health Services Research analysed


routine health data from 147 English general practices adopting the telephone- first approach compared with a 10 per cent random sample of other practices in England. In a telephone-first system the GP decides whether a health issue can be resolved over the phone or if a face-to-face appointment might be more appropriate. Adoption of a telephone-first approach led to fewer face-to-face consultations


(reduced mean of 13 to 9 per day/1000 patients) and more telephone calls (increased mean of 3 to 12 per day/1000 patients), suggesting that a significant number of issues can be managed on the telephone. But there was an overall increase of 8 per cent in the mean time spent consulting by GPs (albeit with large uncertainty on this estimate). Wide variation was found among practices in how well the system functioned, with some noting large reductions in workload and others reporting increases – though a telephone-first system was associated overall with an increased GP workload. There was also no significant associated reduction in attendances at hospital emergency departments.


tools to help guide appraisal, career and salary progression


recommendations for continuing professional development (CPD).


Jeannie Watkins, president of the FPA, said: “The


physician associate profession is a growing and evolving one. We estimate that there will be just under 600 qualified physician associates in the UK by the end of the year. This is expected to grow to up to 3,200 by 2020. “Physician associates, in addition to existing members


of the healthcare team, are here to add value, capacity and generalist skills to the clinical teams providing care for patients across primary and secondary care.” Access the guide at tinyurl.com/yaddhzrd


DEMAND FOR ACTION ON CHILD DENTAL


STATS NEARLY 42 per cent of children in England are missing out on free dental care, according to new statistics from NHS Digital. Figures show that 4.9 million children did not attend


for a free check-up in the 12 months to June 2017, down by 0.2 per cent on 2016 figures despite NICE guidelines recommending children should be seen by a dentist at least once a year.


Nearly half (48.6 per cent) of adults in England have


RISE IN WRITTEN COMPLAINTS


IN ENGLAND WRITTEN complaints to GP and dental practices in England increased by 9.7 per cent in 2016/17 compared to the previous year, according to figures from NHS Digital. Overall there were 208,400 written complaints


received by NHS England during 2016/17, which is up 4.9 per cent on the previous year. This figure means that, on average, 571 written complaints were made every day. Around half (49.8 per cent) of resolved complaints made to primary care


providers were upheld and 50.2 per cent were not upheld. Of the total number of primary care complaints involving a service area, 83.2 per cent related to GP surgeries and 14.6 per cent related to dental practices. Complaints in secondary care rose by only 1.4 per cent in comparison and just over 64 per cent were upheld.


WWW.MDDUS.COM


not seen an NHS dentist in the last two years – a total of 21 million – a slight rise on 2016 figures (48.2 per cent). Polling for the BDA has revealed major gaps in


awareness among parents on eligibility for free dentistry, with one in four parents unaware that routine check-ups are free for children aged under 18. In the last Adult Dental Health Survey, 26 per cent of respondents reported that the type of dental treatment they opted for had been affected by cost – and almost one-fifth (19 per cent) said they had delayed dental treatment for the same reason. The BDA believes these figures reflect a “continued


failure” by government to deliver a coherent oral health strategy and effective public engagement. The organisation advocates a shift to a “genuinely preventive contract” for NHS dentists in England and a national programme to tackle decay, modelled on successful initiatives in Scotland and Wales. Henrik Overgaard-Nielsen, Chair of General Dental


Practice at the BDA, said: “The fact nearly 5 million children are missing out on free dental care is nothing short of a national disgrace.”


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