
THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW
Highlighting best practice
THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW
Highlighting best practice
12 | CHASE MEDICAL
and evening appointments are
undoubtedly convenient for the patient,
initially the roll-out of these services
presented significant staffingchallenges.
We have been working with many of
the teams to ensure that while these
services are provided, the clinicians
involved do not suffer from burnout.
We’ve been proud to provide locums
to support these services, without
whom some of the services may not
have continued. By outsourcing the
recruitment, vetting, compliance checks
and management of locum staff to us,
the services have saved time, reduced
stress and ensuredsustainability.
We continue to be at the forefront
of introducing alternative advanced
clinicians into primary care, to step
into the gap left by our urgent GP
shortage. This year, on top of our
continued provisions to the many
centres who rely on us, we have
been at the forefront of integrating
independent pharmacist prescribers
into general practice. They bring
expertise in medicines management
– as well as their ability to run minor
illness clinics and reduce pressure on
GPs – into primary care, with fantastic
results. We’ve recruited more than 500
independent pharmacy prescribers to
date, and this number is set to grow as
they are increasingly recognised for the
contribution they can make.
The next five years in general
practice
As we have worked within primary
care across the UK for many years,
we are in a unique position. We
have both detailed knowledge of the
different challenges faced in specific
regions and an overview of the sector
as a whole, as well as experience
of managing staffing through the
changes the sector has already seen
over the last decade. We manage our
position responsibly – not only keeping
our finger on the pulse by tracking
changes, gathering information and
collating trends, but also being able to
reasonably pre-empt and pre-plan for
upcoming staffing requirements. This
influences our recruitment strategy to
ensure we are assisting efficiently and
effectively. So, what do we see as the
focus points for the next five years?
With ever-increasing demand, the
expansion of the workforce is of
paramount importance and will be the
key challenge for the NHS as a whole
over the next five to eight years. If not
managed effectively, the NHS itself is
at stake. Brexit risks a further decline in
the pool of clinicians available, so action
must be taken now. In general practice,
this means both recruiting and training
practice nurses and GPs, and further
integrating pharmacist prescribers and
nurse practitioners. Moving forward,
continued awareness of the capabilities
of these new staff and assistance for
centres in adjusting to current structures
(such as introducing streaming) so
they can reap the benefits of these
clinicians is imperative. At Chase
Medical, we will continue our work
with practice managers, GP partners
and CCGs, addressing specific shortfalls
and identifying the most suitable
clinician for each unique centre, in
terms of their existing team and their
patientdemographic.
Alternative staff are the
solution to a growing
shortage of GP appointments
in primary care
As we have
worked within
primary care
across the UK
for many
years, we are
in a unique
position
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13CHASE MEDICAL |
HEALTHCARE & PHARMACEUTICAL
In order to maximise the capacity of
the NHS, we must also ensure the
retention of staff. Our ability to provide
flexible working has improved retention
of several staff groups – for example,
those clinicians reaching retirement,
who have been able to wind down
more gradually by moving to locum
work, rather than stopping completely,
which enables us to continue to
utilise this highly skilled portion of the
workforce. Additionally, return-to-work
training programmes have seen practice
nurses renew their registrations, and we
have been welcoming them back and
supporting them in their return. Our
focus here will be on continued help as
more of these schemes are rolled out
between now and 2024.
Always improving
We were pleased to hear of plans for
investment in the NHS at a primary
and community level to focus more on
prevention. Integrated care will be a
key element of this, and we are set to
assist with more extended access and
admission avoidance schemes. Bringing
forward our experience working with
large primary care service providers,
CCGs and practice groups, we will be
applying our expertise to help the new
primary care networks.
Retention is key internally, too, and with
over 30 per cent of our staff having
more than five years’ tenure with the
business, the level of knowledge is
high, and retention here remains a key
item on the agenda, year on year.
We invest heavily in our workforce
and in the business to continually
improve services to both candidates
and centres. This year, a new CRM
system has been implemented as part
of a digital innovation. This will see a
mobile shift-booking app launched in
the summer, which will enable staff
and clients to book and manage shifts
at the touch of a button.
There are many challenges ahead
in the sector, especially with Brexit
looming, but we are prepped and
ready to help tackle the growing
staffing crisis, with an enduring
commitment to finding innovative
ways to address the shortfall.
We invest
heavily in our
workforce and
in the business
to continually
improve services
to both
candidates and
centres
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Planning for a way
forward