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14 - 23 July 2007
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A Weekly Bulletin of Professional News, Guidance and Policy for Primary Care
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Word Version
Headlines...
- Two Members Sought for WPBA Operations Group
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- RCGP Fellow is Elected as GPC Chair
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- Statement Outlines Doctor’s Duties in Child
Abuse Investigations .....
- Figures Reveal 46% of GPs Earned £100,000 in
2004/2005 .....
Guidance featured in Seven Days is uploaded weekly to the
RCGP Non-Clinical Guidance Database for General Practice.
Professional
News
Two Members Sought for WPBA Operations
Group
The RCGP is recruiting two Members
to the Workplace-Based Assessment (WPBA) Operations Group of the
nMRCGP. The group meets every six to eight weeks to make decisions
about the development and implementation of WPBA, and is closely
linked to the E-Portfolio Group - the e-portfolio is the prime
management tool for the WPBA. Candidates should have training
experience and some familiarity with the design of the WPBA. The
positions are not paid but expenses will be reimbursed.
Applications should be submitted to Malcolm Smith at msmith@rcgp.org.uk.
Information about the WPBA is available on the
College website.
RCGP Fellow is Elected as
GPC Chair
Dr. Laurence Buckman (FRCGP) has
been elected as the new chairman of the BMA’s GPC. He has been a
GPC member since 1991, working as a negotiator since 1997 and as
deputy chairman since 2004. Dr. Richard Vautrey (MRCGP) has been
elected as the new GPC deputy chairman and Dr. Chaand Nagpaul
(FRCGP) as a member of the GPC’s negotiating team.
New
GPC Chair Announced (BMA Press Release)
Statement Outlines Doctor’s
Duties in Child Abuse Investigations
The DH has published a joint
statement with the Department for Children, Schools and Families
(DCSF) urging healthcare professionals to take action if they are
concerned about a child’s welfare. The document clarifies the
professional boundaries and legal framework surrounding the
investigation of child abuse; the basis on which sound judgements
should be made; and the role of giving evidence and acting as an
expert witness.
The Duties of Doctors and
Other Health Professionals in Investigations of Child
Abuse (DH/DCSF Statement)
Figures Reveal 46% of GPs
Earned £100,000 in 2004/2005
Nearly half of GPs earned more than
£100,000 in 2004/2005 according to statistics published by the
Information Centre. The figures represent income from the first
year following the introduction of the new GP contract, prior to
which the average pay was around £80,000. The data reveals that
family doctors in England (£103,564) earned more than their
counterparts in Wales (£91,588), Scotland (£82,696) and Northern
Ireland (£91,151). Urban practices were found to have a lower
average net income than rural practices; and average net income was
seen to decrease as the number of partners in the practice
increased. The data on GP earnings, expenses and income from all
self-employed sources (including NHS and private work) was
collected from practitioners’ tax returns. Salaried GPs’ earnings
were listed separately in the report, the average net income among
UK salaried GPs was £45,560 in 2004/2005, less than that of GP
principals.
GP Earnings and Expenses Enquiry
2004/2005 (IC Final Report)
Applicants Sought for
Scientific Foundation Board Grants
The College’s Scientific Foundation
Board (SFB) is seeking applicants for its research awards, which
recognise work examining the care of patients in general practice.
The Board recently partnered with Heart
Research UK and Roche Products
Limited, and is particularly keen to support work
in the field of cardiovascular disease; chronic kidney disease
(CKD); the management of obesity; and osteoporosis. The closing
date for the latest round of submissions is 31 July 2007. Grants
awarded will not exceed £10,000.
Scientific Foundation Board (RCGP
Website)
Guidance
Women Doctors Face Barriers
in Education and Research
Women doctors are facing barriers
to careers in medical research and teaching according to findings
from a new BMA report. The document reveals that only two out of
all 33 heads of UK medical schools are women; that men are more
likely to be editors of medical journals than women (14% compared
to 6%); and that only one in ten clinical professors is a woman.
The research project, led by Dr Anita Holdcroft from Imperial
College London, surveyed 1,162 doctors working in the NHS and
higher education institutions across the UK. The report makes a
number of recommendations to address these inequalities focussing
on the appointment and promotion process; structures for career
progression; gender equality and flexible working.
Developing Equality in Governance and Management for
Career Progression (Women in Academic Medicine
Project Report)
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Clinical
Announcements
College Voices Support for
MMR Vaccine
The College re-affirmed its support
for the MMR vaccine in light of Dr Andrew Wakefield’s GMC hearing,
by joining 13 other medical organisations in signing a statement
endorsing its use. The declaration reads: “We believe that the MMR
triple vaccine protects the health of children. A large body of
scientific evidence shows no link between the vaccine and autism.”
In a separate RCGP statement, Chairman Professor Mayur Lakhani
praised the efforts of primary care professionals in increasing
trust in the MMR and said it was important that the GMC hearing did
not take away from this. He said: “Trust in the MMR is increasing
with a more positive reception of the vaccine by parents. This has
been achieved by the hard work of everybody in primary care. We
hope the GMC hearing - which was about a separate issue – will not
adversely affect this hard work.”
RCGP Response to Review of
Diabetes Services
The Healthcare Commission has
published a review of diabetes services in England, showing that
most diabetic patients have regular checkups; are given the key
tests required; and report knowing enough about their medication.
Whilst these results are encouraging, it was also noted that there
is a wide variation in the achievements of general practices within
each PCT. The review set out to examine how well trusts commission
services aimed at helping diabetic adults care for themselves, and
the majority (73%) of PCTs scored “fair” for their performance. In
response to findings the Commission has outlined five areas for
improvement to help increase support for diabetic patients:
- Better partnership between
diabetics and healthcare professionals when planning and agreeing
care
- Increasing patient attendance at
education courses to improve knowledge of diabetes
- Working more closely with
organisations providing and commissioning diabetes services
- Increasing the number of diabetics
with safe long term blood glucose levels
- Reducing variation in general
practices’ achievements
The Commission has also called on
PCTs to improve the way they commission diabetes services, by
reviewing the data submitted by their general practices.
Managing Diabetes: improving services for people with
diabetes (Healthcare Commission Review)
Commenting on the review, Professor
Mayur Lakhani, Chair of the RCGP, said: “The real issue here is the
lack of structured patient education programmes for GPs to access.
More effort needs to be put in by PCTs to improve the facilities
for education of patients with diabetes, as recommended by NICE. We
urge PCTs to respond quickly on plans to establish formal
structured diabetes education programmes like DESMOND and DAPHNE
and to support practices in accessing and providing such services
in the community. Family doctors are well placed to provide
personalised, responsive and effective service for patients with
diabetes. Previous surveys by the Healthcare Commission also show
that the majority of patients reported that they had been involved
as much as they wanted to be in decisions about the care and
treatment given by their GP.”
Sexually Transmitted
Infections Continue to Rise in the UK
The number of new sexually
transmitted infections (STIs) diagnosed in genitourinary medicine
(GUM) clinics has increased by 2% (from 368,341 in 2005 to 376,508
in 2006), according to figures released by the Health Protection
Agency (HPA). The breakdown of new STI diagnoses showed that:
- Chlamydia increased by 4% (from 109,418 in 2005 to 113,585 in
2006)
- Genital warts rose by 3% (from 81,201 in 2005 to 83,745 in
2006)
- Genital herpes rose by 9% (from 19,830 in 2005 to 21,698 in
2006)
- Syphilis decreased by 1% (from 2,804 in 2005 to 2,766 in
2006)
- Gonorrhoea fell by 1% (from 19,248 in 2005 to 19,007 in
2006)
The Workload of GUM clinics rose by
6% between 2005 and 2006, due to an increase in the number of HIV
tests being undertaken (from 628,810 to 705,502) and a rise in the
number of sexual health screenings over the past year (882,593 to
960,868).
Increase in Sexually Transmitted Infections During
2006 (HPA Press Release)
Guuidance
Continuity in Palliative
Care
A new book published by the College - Continuity in Palliative Care
- provides practical information to primary care teams, to help
them manage patients faced with life-threatening diseases and
difficult treatment choices. The publication examines the issues
involved in continuity of care from the perspective of patients,
their carers and healthcare professionals. It also presents
research results and examples of good practice. Full information
can be found on the Colleges’ Online
Bookstore. RCGP Members, Fellows and Associates
are entitled to a 10% discount on all book purchases.
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England
Announcements
CMO Publishes Annual
Report
Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam
Donaldson, has published his 2006 Annual Report. It focuses on four
key areas – improving hand hygiene in hospitals; an opt-out system
for organ donation; reducing the risk of radiation overdoses during
cancer treatment; and reviewing the cause of intrapartum-related
deaths. It then reviews progress on the actions recommended in the
2005 document.
On the State of Public Health: annual report of the
Chief Medical Officer 2006 (DH Document)
Prison Healthcare and Rehabilitation Programmes Under
Strain
The early release of offenders from
English and Welsh prisons - to improve conditions and reduce
overcrowding - has added strain to healthcare services for inmates,
according to a new BMA publication. Communication with prison
doctors has revealed problems with continuity of care and record
keeping (resulting in prisoners with serious mental health and drug
dependency problems not being assessed or treated properly); delays
to prisoners undertaking rehabilitation programmes due to drastic
shortages of police escort officers; and an increase in the waiting
times for new prisoners to be assessed by a prison doctor.
Crisis in the Cells (BMA
Report)
In a similar but separate
publication, the DH has issued examples of good practice in the
provision of health services to offenders in prison and the
community. The information was collected as part of a survey
commissioned by the DH and conducted by the Care Services
Improvement Partnership (CSIP).
Good Practice in Offender Health (DH
Publication)
Parliamentary News
New Ministerial
Responsibilities Announced
The DH has announced the areas of
responsibility for its new ministerial team:
- Alan Johnson MP (Secretary of
State for Health) will be charged with NHS and social care
delivery and system reforms, along with financing and resourcing
the health service.
- Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo
(Minister of State) will deal with public health issues,
health inequalities, fertility, health protection (including
emergency preparedness and pandemic flu), and the work of the
NICE.
- Ben Bradshaw MP (Minister of
State and Minister for the South West) will oversee the
spending review, the 18 week patient pathway, workforce capacity,
IT in the NHS, and Primary Care.
- Professor Sir Ara Darzi
(Parliamentary Under Secretary of State) will undertake the
NHS ‘Next Stage Review’.
- Ann Keen MP (Parliamentary
Under Secretary of State) will be responsible for quality,
patient safety, chronic diseases and long term conditions, and
children's health services.
- Ivan Lewis MP (Parliamentary
Under Secretary of State) will deal with social care, mental
health, prison health, allied health professionals, carers, and
end-of-life care.
A full list of
Ministerial responsibilities can be
viewed on the DH website.
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Wales
Parliamentary News
Protecting Adults Who
Lack Capacity to Consent in Research
GPs can be called upon to judge
whether people lacking capacity to consent should be included in
research projects, according to guidance issued by the Secretary of
State and the Welsh Ministers. Section 32(3) of the Mental Capacity
Act 2005 states that researchers must identify a consultee to
protect the interests and safety of participants who lack the
capacity to consent, and ensure that the person’s current and
previously expressed wishes and feelings are respected. GPs may be
asked to act as a “nominated consultee” if no “personal consultee”
(someone caring for the person's welfare in a non-professional,
unpaid capacity) is available. Family doctors can only undertake
this role if they have no connection with the project. The guidance
outlines the duties of a “nominated consultee” which include:
- Providing advice to the researcher
about the participant
- Seeking views from family,
friends, or paid carers – who may not be willing or able to act as
a consultee - to establish the wishes and feelings of the
participant
- Considering the wishes and
interests of the person throughout the project
Guidance on Nominating a Consultee for Research
Involving Adults who Lack Capacity to Consent
(Welsh Assembly Report)
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Scotland
Announcements
Applicants Sought for Humanitarian Health Fund
Grants
Applications are invited for the third round of the Humanitarian
Health Fund. The grants will be offered to Scottish-based
healthcare professionals undertaking short term humanitarian work
in Sub-Saharan Africa and areas affected by the Asian Tsunami.
Successful applicants will receive up to £5,000 to cover travel
expenses. The deadline for applications is 17 August 2007.
Humanitarian Health Fund (Scottish
Executive Press Release)
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Northern Ireland
Announcements
No announcements.
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Contact Us
RCGP Information Services can be contacted at:
Email:
info@rcgp.org.uk
Tel: 020 7581 3232 ext: 240
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Disclaimer
Seven Days uses third party information and neither endorses nor guarentees the accuracy or authenticity of these sources.
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