GPs
Hunt backs chief inspector of GPs plan
Jeremy Hunt has backed plans for a chief inspector of general practice, to be based in the Care Quality Commission.
Updated: Interactive commissioning system map
HSJ has updated its comprehensive interactive map of the reformed NHS commissioning system, showing critical details about the new organisations.
GPs express online records concern
Giving patients online access to their health records will lead to doctors having to explain themselves more often, according to a survey by the Medical Protection Society.
Tweeting doctors 'should give ID'
Doctors must identify themselves by name on Twitter if their profile alludes to their profession, new guidance suggests.
CCG representative group names GP leads
A representative group for clinical commissioning groups has appointed two co-chairs of its leadership group.
New contract to be imposed on GPs
The government has confirmed it will begin imposing significant changes to the GP contract at the end of the month.
Exclusive: National chief GP appointed by commissioning board
The NHS Commissioning Board had appointed a deputy medical director for primary care, HSJ has learned.
GP survey reiterates concerns about contract
More than a quarter of GPs believe that proposed changes to their contracts will mean they have to restrict access to patients, a poll suggests.
Child 999 admissions continue to rise
The number of children admitted to English hospitals as emergencies has increased every year since 2003, researchers have found.
Lamb calls for out-of-hours primary care reform
Health minister Norman Lamb has said new arrangements for out-of-hours primary care could be needed to help cut rising demand for emergency services.
Social enterprise consults lawyers over lost out-of-hours contract
A social enterprise has consulted lawyers after losing the contract to supply GP out-of-hours services in two London boroughs to a Bristol-based company.
Many Britons 'do not trust GPs'
Almost two in three Britons do not have faith in their GP and 10 per cent of the public have panicked and asked accident and emergency departments to treat minor ailments, a survey has revealed.
GP contract: DH proposes new funding formula
GP practice income should be more closely linked to deprivation from 2014, the Department of Health has proposed.
Family GP firm named preferred bidder for 20 practices
A company run by husband and wife GPs has been named as preferred bidder to run 20 practices in Liverpool and Sefton.
CCG bans GP member from governing body
Bexley Clinical Commissioning Group has banned a member GP from standing to become a governing body representative.
Minister seeks to defend lack of GPs in CCG lead role
Health minister Lord Howe has attempted to defend the health reforms against HSJ’s finding that fewer than a quarter of clinical commissioning groups will have a GP as their accountable officer.
Make telehealth plans public, says Labour
The Department of Health is under renewed pressure to publish evidence to support its claims that using telehealth could save the NHS £1.2bn, after the Labour party joined those calling for publication of its calculations.
Exclusive: GP practices' huge income variation revealed
Some GP practices are paid substantially more than others, regardless of the number and type of patients they serve, HSJ analysis reveals.
GPs agree to give up financial interests in Virgin companies
The “vast majority” of GPs with shares in local Virgin Care provider companies have agreed to resign their financial stakes to remove potential conflicts of interest.
Hakin: Quality premium will not come from £25 per head management allowance
Clinical commissioning groups’ “quality premium” performance bonus will be separate from - and not funded by - their £25 per head management fund, the national commissioning lead has told HSJ.
More on GPs
Unlock potential with clinical senates
A prototype clinical senate explored the issues the real organisations will face
Improving the quality of dementia care
Better planning and a reduction in medication can improve quality of life and make savings
GP commissioners: sole traders or private governments?
GPs must get used to some big changes in their legal status
Why physician involvement can inspire higher performing healthcare
The level of physician involvement is positively associated with better performing hospitals and improved financial management, write Peter Spurgeon and colleagues.
Exploring attitudes to leadership among ‘grass roots’ doctors
Duncan Bland looks at the findings from nine leadership focus groups that reveal doctors’ definitions of clinical leadership, the skills they believed were important and the potential barriers to and enablers of leadership they perceived in the health system.
