Page 159 - HA Convention 2015

Masterclasses

MC10.1 Primary Care Service 14:30 Theatre 1

Partnership in Developing Primary Care Tuesday, 19 May
Sayer C
Camden Clinical Commissioning Group, National Health Service, UK HOSPITAL AUTHORITY CONVENTION 2015

In the UK, the Health and Social Care Act 2012 created new statutory organisations — Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs),
led by clinicians and responsible for commissioning community services and most hospital services. Camden CCG covers
an inner-city population of 250,000 with a range of health inequalities linked to deprivation. As with all health systems across
the world, changing demographics (people living longer with long-term conditions) and rising expectations and demands on
services create challenges to the National Health Service (NHS).

Camden CCG is clear that at the heart of improving outcomes for patients sits primary care where more than 90% of
consultations in the NHS occur. They have a key role to play in:
(1) Prevention of disease;
(2) identification and earlier diagnosis of disease;
(3) co-ordinating and integrating care working in partnership with other health and social care providers; and
(4) supporting patients to live better with long-term conditions and preventing complications of disease.

However, primary care faces a range of challenges including:
(1) The increasing workload as care shifts to the community;
(2) the level of resource (premises, workforce and financial) in primary care. This has dropped from 30% of the total spend

on the NHS at its inception in 1946 to approximately 7% in 2014;
(3) variability in quality, outcomes and access between practices;
(4) balancing the demands for access and unscheduled care with delivering chronic disease management;
(5) co-ordinating care for increasingly complex patients in a complex system; and
(6) limited support from other parts of the health and social care system.

Camden CCG has identified a range of key partnerships necessary to support and develop primary care:
(1) Commissioners support to primary care-supporting peer review, education and training, incentives and workforce

planning;
(2) between practices themselves developing a General Practitioner federation that can support each other through shared

workforce and resources; and
(3) through partnerships with other healthcare providers (community and acute Trusts who provide help and support

managing long-term conditions) and with social care (to support the elderly and frail).

Through these partnerships we have demonstrated:
(1) Increased numbers of patients identified with disease;
(2) Increased access for patients to primary care;
(3) Supported decision-making that has reduced elective and non-elective hospital use; and
(4) Improvements to patients’ experience of living with disease.

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