Doctor articles from December 2006

Doctor archives from December 2006

Flu jab plea for care home staff.
December 5, 2006... Immunisation More care home staff should be vaccinated against flu to protect residents, according to latest research. The DoH advises employers of staff in care homes to consider providing vaccination for them, but evidence suggests...

GPs get shock over huge electricity bill.
December 5, 2006... Expenses Dr Robert Lambourn and his partners were puzzled when they were landed with a massive electricity bill soon after moving into their new health centre about a year ago. The Northumberland GP said he had expected perhaps a...

DoH choice agenda shown to harm care.
December 5, 2006... Government's own advisers savage cornerstone of NHS reforms Cathy Comerford A damning indictment of the Government's drive to push patient choice has been published by the Department of Health's own research group. The study,...

Fury at DoH plans to claw back GP wprofits.
December 5, 2006... Remuneration Steve Ford and Paola Accalai Government negotiators say they will use data on GP profits to lever further claw-backs from agreements struck under the new GMS contract. GPs found themselves under attack over pay once again...

IT woes thwart C&B uptake.(choose and book )(Brief article)
December 5, 2006... Choose and Book GPs in the areas with the lowest rate of Choose and Book (C&B) referrals are blaming IT problems for slow uptake of the system. Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire LMC is attempting to safeguard directed enhanced...

PBC groups must toe line on national goals.
December 5, 2006... Commissioning Doctor reporters Practice-based commissioners will now have to prove to PCTs that their business plans are 'consistent with national priorities'. The DoH issued updated guidance on PBC last week - superseding the...

Patients force rethink on tender.
December 5, 2006... APMS A PCT in Kent may be forced to abandon plans to tender a practice under APMS only, following stiff opposition from local GPs and patients. PCT attempts to offload practices to the private sector are increasingly being hampered...

Call to treat emergency patients in community.(Brief article)
December 12, 2006... Emergency medicine Most emergency patients admitted into hospitals for conditions such as pulmonary embolism and ectopic pregnancy should be treated in the community, the NHS Institute for Innovation and Improve-ment recommends. A...

GPs expect vocation to become 'just a job'.
December 12, 2006... Future trends Cathy Comerford and Amena Saleem The face of general practice is set to change dramatically over the next five years, according to today's GPs, whose vision of the future is not bright. A survey of almost 1,500 GPs,...

GPs regret voting for new contract.
December 12, 2006... Survey NEARLY half of GPs would not vote for the new GMS contract if given the chance again, according to an exclusive Doctor survey. And 52% believe the contract has adversely affected the standing of the profession, generating...

GPs suspicious of specialisation.
December 12, 2006... GPwSIs Many GPs are uneasy about the trend toward clinical specialisation in primary care, Doctor's survey shows. As more secondary care pro- cedures are undertaken in the community and the DoH pilots the move of specialties into...

Ministers fulfil threat to cap GPs' pensions.
December 12, 2006... Government reneges on superannuation agreement Doctor reporters Ministers have carried out their threat to cap GP pensions, claiming that not to do so would take money away from patient care. Such suggestions were rubbished by GP...

PCT funding cuts to hit GP smoking cessation services.
December 12, 2006... Services Adam Legge GPs face losing effective smoking cessation resources just when they need them most, because cash-strapped PCTs are running down services. The warning comes from the architect of the NHS's smoking cessation service...