From April 2023 new GP Contract changes came into force. As part of the new contract around access requirements, patients should now be offered an assessment of need, or signposted to an appropriate service, at first contact with the practice.
Practices will no longer be able to request that patients contact the practice at a later time unless they have been offered an appointment which doesn’t suit them. For example, they wish to wait for a later appointment to become available with a specific GP or on a day they are off work.
Reception staff will continue to sign post patients to the most suitable clinician. This includes GPs, Advanced Nurse Practitioners, Practice Nurses, Healthcare Assistants, Physios, Mental Health Practitioners and Podiatrists.
The number of appointments per clinic will be capped in line with BMA safe working guidelines. This is the maximum safe number of patients each GP should be seeing per day. This is in addition to their admin work.
Once the practice is fully booked that day and if patients can’t wait to till the next prebookable appointment, patients will be sign posted to NHS 111 for triage.
For more Information on changes to the GP contract and safe working in General Practice please click on the following links: