A vision for world-class general practice: RCGP
launches Roadmap
Practices working together in "federations" to deliver a wider
range of healthcare services where patients want them - this is the
blueprint for the future of general practice unveiled today
(Thursday 13 September) by the Royal College of General
Practitioners.
Its landmark publication The Future
Direction of General Practice: A roadmap outlines a new model
of health and social care that builds on the needs of patients and
the strengths and values of general practice. It demonstrates how
the vast potential of primary care can be maximised to bring about
major improvements in patient care.
The RCGP is concerned that the NHS as its
stands cannot deliver the services and care needed by patients in
the 21st century and beyond. Problems such as
fragmentation of care, health inequalities and co-morbidity need to
be urgently addressed.
The RCGP believes that this change can be led
by GPs themselves. The roadmap positions GPs firmly at the centre
of the NHS as leaders and drivers for improvement, delivering
the widest range of services – including scans, x-rays and mental
health provision – and only sending patients to hospital as a last
resort.
The proposed new or “federated” model of care
requires a fundamental and strategic change in the organisation of
primary care and the management capacity of general practice –
spearheaded by strong clinical and business leadership from the
profession itself. Crucially, it will also demand a step change in
the current relationship between primary care trusts and GPs.
The RCGP is confident that its vision - while
ambitious - is achievable. The roadmap has the backing of the UK’s
major primary care organisations and cites examples of where its
principles are already being adopted. The College wants such good
practice to be systemised and rolled out on a much wider
scale.
Its proposed new model of care (diagram 1,
attached) is based around “building blocks” of high quality
personal care, patient safety and accountability.
It focuses on three points:
· improving the
quality of the doctor patient relationship;
· developing
general practices as learning organisations;
· encouraging
practices to form federated entities.
Under the new system, GPs would provide
services such as scans and x-rays and virtually all health problems
in the population, including mental health, would be dealt with in
primary care closer to patients’ homes. Generalists and specialists
would work more closely together to ensure that hospitals were
reserved for acute illness, specialised investigations and major
surgery (diagram 2, attached). The document also highlights the
importance of ‘low carbon’ health care.
To support new models of patient care, the
RCGP introduced a radical new curriculum and training programme for
GPs in August 2007.
RCGP Chairman Professor Mayur Lakhani said:
“Our blueprint is built around the values that both patients and
doctors hold dear: the doctor-patient relationship, generalist
care, and continuity. This new model of care is a breakthrough that
puts the needs of patients at the heart of NHS. The future is
integrated care and in this way we can end the waiting that is
endemic in the NHS.
“General practice has been the enduring
feature of the NHS and GPs have made a major contribution to
raising standards of clinical care and we now have the opportunity
to take this to a higher level. Those who say GPs are complacent
are wrong, this document is a testament to the ambition that GPs
hold for improving health outcomes for their patients.
“Patients want to be treated as people not
numbers; they want to see a doctor they know and who knows them.
Problems such as access to appointments and urgent care worry GPs
as much as they worry patients – the scaling up of primary care is
our solution.
“The RCGP roadmap proposes a new dynamic with
family doctors at the heart of improvement and marks a comeback for
personal, family doctoring. It firmly establishes general practice
as the speciality of family medicine and reinforces the role of GPs
as specialists. Our new training programme for GPs will ensure even
higher standards of care as well as empowering patients to become
fully engaged in their care.
“It is an ambitious declaration for a stronger
and more vibrant general practice-based healthcare system; one
which is championed by GPs, is patient centred and which
consistently delivers high quality, safety and accountability to
patients.
“The cause of better patient care - as
espoused in the roadmap - is one which GPs and patients can rally
round. Every support must be given to ensure that its
recommendations are implemented and that the roadmap becomes a
reality.”
Ends
Please read on for the
Roadmap
Notes to editors
The Future Direction of General Practice:
A Roadmap the result of a three-year consultation with
patients, GPs and other stakeholders and is supported by the
following:
- BMA
NHS Alliance
- National Association of Primary Care (NAPC)
- National Association of Sessional GPs
- The Committee of General Practice Education Directors
(COGPED)
- The Society for Academic Primary Care (SAPC)
- The Small Practice Association (SPA)
The Royal College of General Practitioners is
a network of over 30,000 family doctors working to improve care for
patients. We work to encourage and maintain the highest standards
of general medical practice and act as the voice of GPs on
education, training, research and clinical standards.
For further information contact RCGP PR Team
020 7344 3135/6/7 or press@rcgp.org.uk