Welcome to RCGP Scotland
The Royal College
of General Practitioners (RCGP) is a professional academic
organisation for general practitioners in the UK. Our aim is
to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general medical
practice, and to assist its members by helping them deliver on
their commitment to improving patient care, develop their own
skills as General Practitioners as well as developing General
Practice as a specialty.
Call for National Clinical
Lead to Inform Significant Mental Health Initiative
The RCGP Scotland Living
Better Project is seeking to recruit a Clinical Lead to provide
clinical guidance and leadership across this initiative.
Living
Better aims to improve the mental health and
wellbeing of people with diabetes and coronary heart disease (CHD).
The project will work with GP practices across 6 Community Health
Partnerships (CHPs) in Scotland to improve the detection of mental
health problems in people with CHD and diabetes and improve the
support that they receive for these problems. Living
Better is led by RCGP Scotland in partnership with the
Scottish Development Centre for Mental Health and University of
Stirling. It is funded by the Scottish Government and
runs from January 2008 to November 2010. The Living Better
Clinical Lead will provide clinical advice and guidance to the
Executive Project Team and Steering group, and support the
development and implementation of the 6 CHP pilots.
Living
Better is seeking to recruit a
General Practitioner to cover this role.
Expressions of interest are now invited from
individuals who are able to commit to one session per week (on
average) for the term of the project.
Input levels may vary throughout the
lifetime of this initiative.
You will be an RCGP
member in good standing and will have a keen interest and
understanding of the issues surrounding mental health. An
interest in the links between mental health and long-term
conditions would be advantageous. A detailed description of the
Clinical Lead role can also be found via
this link.
Expressions of interest,
specifying why you are interested in this role and your previous
experience in leading change and innovation within the mental
health field should be submitted in writing to Linda McGlynn,
Project Officer, Living Better Project by 12th
January 2009.
For further information
or to apply for this role, please contact:
Linda McGlynn, Living
Better Project Officer
linda@sdcmh.org.uk
(0131 555 5959 or 07973 967122)
12/12/08
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RCGP Press Release - Double
Celebration as Bruntsfield Medical Practice Receives the
100th QPA Award
Dr Ken Lawton, Chair of RCGP
Scotland, was on hand to present the 100th Quality
Practice Award plaque to the Bruntsfield Medical Practice on
26th November. To date, 84 practices in Scotland have
been successfully awarded the QPA with 16 gaining re-accreditation,
an excellent achievement for both the Bruntsfield Medical Practice
and general practice in Scotland as a whole. This is the second
time that the Bruntsfield Medical Practice has been awarded the
QPA, having first achieved the award (which is valid for 5 years)
in 2002. Dr Lawton said, “It is a great achievement for Bruntsfield
Practice to receive the QPA award for a second time, all members of
the practice team should be extremely proud”.
The busy Edinburgh based
practice, comprises eight GPs, a Practice Nursing Team and a group
of front of house and practice management staff. Bruntsfield is an
excellent example of a modern medical practice that has embraced
the arrival of new computer systems, electronic records and
prescribing. The ethos of the practice is to constantly strive for
excellence in continuity care and lack of complacency.
To have reached a total of
100 awards across Scotland is a major achievement for QPA which
continues to go from strength to strength. An avid supporter of the
Quality Practice Award, Dr Ken Lawton said, “quality has always
been high on the agenda of GPs in Scotland and RCGP Scotland
recognises this with the Quality Practice Award for those that
reach the highest standards”.
Issued by:
Josie Westley at jwestley@rcgp-scotland.org.uk
or 0131 260 6801.
Note for editors - QPA
Background
The Quality Practice Award
was first conceived in Scotland in 1996 by GPs from North-East
Scotland as a practice-wide version of Fellowship by Assessment
(FBA). QPA was designed to recognise the commitment of the entire
practice team in providing quality of care for patients and staff.
Set at a very high standard, the award is an excellent benchmark to
set General Practice as the cornerstone of primary care.
For more information on QPA please visit the
QPA
Website
12/12/08
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RCGP Press Release - Christmas
Aid from RCGP Scotland
On 9th December RCGP
Scotland held a lunch event for Edinburgh Women’s Aid, a refuge
service for women and children suffering from domestic abuse. The
refuge provides temporary, safe accommodation along with other
crucial services such as counseling. Staff at RCGP Scotland bought
at least one Christmas present for a mother or a child at the
refuge. A gigantic bag of presents was then presented to the
charity.
Dr. Ken Lawton, Chair of
the college in Scotland said:
“This year, instead of
buying traditional ‘secret santa’ gifts for each other, the staff
at RCGP Scotland opted to give to Edinburgh Women’s Aid. This is an
immensely worthy cause, and I’m delighted that we as a College have
taken part. During the presentation of gifts the Women’s Aid guests
gave an overview of the turbulent experiences some of the families
have, particularly during the festive season. This was a real
eye-opener and makes all the staff at RCGP Scotland very happy to
be able to support this invaluable charity.”
Notes for editors
The Royal College of
General Practitioners (RCGP) is the academic organisation in the UK
for general practitioners. Its aim is to encourage and
maintain the highest standards of general medical practice and act
as the ‘voice’ of general practitioners on education, training and
issues around standards of care for patients.
The College in Scotland
came into existence in 1953 (one year after the UK College), when a
Scottish Council was created to take forward the College’s
interests within the Scottish Health Service. After a number of
years of increased activity (and political devolution in Scotland),
the College bought premises in 25 Queen Street, Edinburgh, in 1999
to house its expanding Scottish operation.
Enquiries
Josie Westley at jwestley@rcgp-scotland.org.uk
or 0131 260 6801.
12/12/08
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Free Event - Alcohol Screening and
Brief Interventions in Primary Care
RCGP Scotland has
been commissioned by NHS Health Scotland to deliver three one-day
training events which are primarily aimed at GPs. The day will be
made up of short presentations and practical exercises in brief
interventions. Our experienced trainers will provide tailored
teaching suitable for enhanced service work on alcohol and brief
interventions, and support delivery of the HEAT target on alcohol
brief interventions.
The day is free due to
funding from NHS Health Scotland and is open to GPs and
nurses. Candidates must complete an e-module (which will be
available online from January 2009) followed by attending a
face-to-face training day. The training days will take place
on:
- Thursday 26th February
2009 – Glasgow
- Thursday 12th March 2009 –
Edinburgh
- Thursday 19th March 2009 –
Aberdeen
Please reserve your place ASAP as
spaces are limited at each event.
For more information please contact Amy
Lambert on 0131 260 6815 or email drugmisuse@rcgp-scotland.org.uk.
03/12/08
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Adult Support and Protection
(Scotland) Act 2007
The Adult Support and Protection (Scotland)
Act 2007 became law on 29 October 2008, creating new measures to
protect adults who are believed to be at risk of harm. The act
introduces a statutory duty for NHS staff to report and share
information with other agencies and to co-operate with the council
in inquiries. More importantly, health professionals can also have
a central role in protecting “adults at risk”.
Relevant highlights of the Act:
- The council may request a GP or other health professional to
provide a report about the “adult at risk” relating to the
circumstances leading up to or relevant to its inquiries.
- NHS staff must report the facts and circumstances of the case
to the council where they know or believe that an adult is “at
risk”.
- The Act allows a health professional to conduct a medical
examination of the “adult at risk”.
- The examination of health or other records by a health
professional for the purposes of inquiries or investigations.
Among the activities that a GP may be asked to
undertake, the following will attract additional remuneration:
- Undertaking medical examinations or assessments under an
assessment order.
- Writing reports.
- Attending adult protection case conferences.
- Attending court.
A short introduction to the
Act
FAQ
Further training
material, guidance and info
28/11/08
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Festive Season - GP Surgery
Closures!
This year Christmas Day
and New Years Day fall on Thursdays, which
means two four-day closures of most GP Surgeries.
At the last meeting of P3
(RCGP Scotland’s strategic patient participation group) the topic
of Festive Closure of GP practices was discussed. This has a huge
impact on patients and, in turn, on NHS24 who receive a large
volume of calls from patients who have run out of their medication
and/or cannot find a local pharmacy open. One important
implication of this closure for patients is getting their repeat
prescriptions. The situation is stressful for
patients and carers in addition to causing an extra and avoidable
workload for an already busy service.
Every year, NHS24 run
a national campaign in the weeks before Christmas to encourage
patients to ensure they have sufficient medication for the
holiday period - but people still run out!
For Patients:
Order your Repeat Prescriptions early!
For
GPs:
Remember to inform your patients!
Most GPs are aware
of this problem but this is not the case for patients.
Therefore, any form of reminder to patients and/or carers such as a
note included with scripts, a poster in surgery waiting rooms and
local pharmacies, or verbal reminders during consultations
will help to increase awareness.
Thank you
28/11/08
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EPASS: External
Evaluation Responses
In May 2008, RCGP
Scotland commissioned an external evaluation of EPASS to help form
and develop the scheme, following its launch four years ago in
April 2004. The response to this evaluation was excellent, with
informative feedback from GPs, GP Appraisers and EPASS Providers.
EPASS received many positive comments from respondents such as:
- “High quality education relevant to GPs”
- “EPASS is extremely useful as it ensures a high standard of
meeting”
- “Useful for Appraisal”
- “A marker of high quality education”
- “Useful to have a nationally approved and recognised
certificate guaranteeing the validity/usefulness of a CPD
course”
- “I think it is an excellent service and well put together”
The EPASS team would like to thank
all respondents for their useful and informative feedback. If you
should have any questions, please contact the EPASS Team at:
epass@rcgp-scotland.org.uk
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EPASS: New Quality
Assurance Feedback Questionnaire
RCGP Scotland have enhanced
the Quality Assurance procedures by launching an online quality
assurance questionnaire for GPs and other Primary Care
Professionals to provide anonymous feedback on an EPASS accredited
event they have attended. The feedback on these questionnaires
will be highly valued and will help us to ensure that the
quality of education received by attending an EPASS accredited
event is of a high standard. To complete the online survey for an
EPASS accredited event you have attended, please click
here.
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Annual Report
2008
Highlights of this year's RCGP
Scotland Annual Report are now available to view online, along with
a link to the full version. Please follow the link below:
Annual Report 2008
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Health Visitor
Review Petition
GPs in Glasgow have been
frantically campaigning for several weeks now against the highly
contentious Health Vistor Review pilots that were implemented in
Glasgow. The various paper and e-petitions have gathered over
20,000 signature and was submitted to the Scottish Parliament
on Wednesday 29 October. Dr Peter Cawston, who handed in the
petition has reported that feedback from MSPs was positive. An
earlier press release providing background on the subject of the
Health Visitor Review can be found below.
Press
Release: Response to Health Visitor Review, Glasgow
A press release has been
issued in response to the Health Visitor Review underway in Glagow.
To view the press release, follow the link below:
Press Release: Health Visitor
Review
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WALK THE TALK youth
friendly services - Update
The Walk the Talk
project (led by NHS Health Scotland) enjoyed a busy year in
07-08 which culminated in the national conference targeting primary
care services for young people in March of this
year. Following the great success of the conference,
Walk the Talk members are keen to push forward with putting all the
great ideas unearthed at the event into practice.
While the Walk the Talk
website already contains an extensive resource section, including a
self-audit for practices, it is recognised that there are more
needs to be met. In order to achieve this as effectively as
possible, the WTT members have mapped out what it required and are
eager to set up professional multi-disciplinary resources
development steering groups to shape and mould these initial
concepts.
Seeking a rounded view of the needs and desires of
practice staff and GPs across Scotland to ensure the resources are
developing in line with an identified need, it is
envisioned that the group will have representation from: GPs,
Public Health officials, practice managers and other youth
organizations such as healthy respect and Youthlink.
If you have a keen interest in
youth-friendly services and wish to help shape how it can be
delivered via representation on the resource development steering
groups, please contact Jo MacLennan at NHS Health Scotland on
Jo.MacLennan@health.scot.nhs.uk.
Also, if you haven't already signed
up to join the
WTT Network, then please do so now!
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Modular Quality Practice Award
(mQPA)
The evolution of QPA sees the
development of a new modularised version which aims to encourage
non QPA GP practices to undertake a more manageable, modularised
approach to the award. Instead of having 18 months to
complete QPA, practices will have 5 years in which to complete six
modules. The Pilot is now officially launched!!!
Modular
Quality Practice Award (mQPA)
If you wish to declare your
interest in the mQPA please contact Claire Godley on cgodley@rcgp-scotland.org.uk.
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RCGP Scotland Operational Plan
2008/2009
RCGP Scotland's Operational Plan
for 2008/2009 is now available to view. The plan is
based upon the College's Strategic Plan and is designed to
complement it. Targeting the needs of our members and key
external stakeholders in Scotland as part of a national UK
organisation, the plan clearly maps the agreed priorities and
operational tasks to be delivered by RCGP Scotland.
RCGP Scotland Operational
Plan 2008/2009
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