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Flu Vaccines 2000
I know your refrigerators are probably relieved to see the end of 1999s flu vaccines and that you may not have even thought about 2000's supply yet.
However, your LMC is leading the Collaborative Purchase of Flu Vaccines for an even greater consortium of Greater Manchester LMCs.
Last year's consortium was a huge success with each dosage costing only £2.18. Even a 50% discount from other suppliers would only have achieved a cost per vaccine of £2.60.
As a result a number of other Local Medical Committees have decided to join the consortium for 2000. Last year the consortium purchased in excess of 45,000 doses, an increase on that number for 2000 can only strengthen our bargaining power.
This year Paul Stevens will be co-ordinating your orders for flu and possibly pneumovax for 2000. You should recently have received a questionnaire and we would be grateful to receive an indication of your order levels by early December.
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Clinical Governance
Clinical Governance is a term we have all heard on many occasions over the last 18 months but what relevance does it have to us practising GPs?The New NHS Modern & Dependable, defined clinical governance as 'action to ensure risks are avoided, adverse effects rapidly detected, openly investigated and lessons learnt, good practice rapidly disseminated and systems in place to improve clinical care.' On April 1st 1999 this was incorporated in the Health Act.
Clinical Governance is a ten-year programme and organisations, including General Practice, need to have completed '4 key steps' by 1st April 2000:
1. Establish leadership
2. Accountability and working arrangements
3. Baseline assessment of capacity and capability
4. Formulate and agree a development plan
Your PCGs each have a board member responsible for Clinical Governance whilst Raina Haynes has been appointed as co-ordinator at the Health Authority.
Increasing requests for information from the Health Authority e.g. number of diabetics are all part of the information gathering exercise enabling your Clinical Governance leads to formulate the development plan.
Help is available from the audit leads of the old MAAG contact Raina on 419 4234 for further details. Presently, there is no compulsion to return the information and extra resources can be negotiated.
Any concerns regarding the legal implications of Clinical Governance please contact David Gilbert at the LMC.
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Practice Income & Expenditure Tips 1. Gas & Electricity
It our aim to present expenditure saving and income generating tips in future newsletters. Hopefully, practices can send in articles for this section. However, to start the ball rolling lets consider the deregulation of the supply of gas & electricity.
There are potential savings to be earned when changing either your electricity supplier to British Gas or your gas supplier to electricity.
The table was compiled from the British Gas web site and shows the potential savings on electricity supply.
Call British Gas on 0845 60 30 791 for further information or for savings on gas from electricity suppliers call 0800 50 30 50.Alternatively
click here- BGAS- to visit the site
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Dermatology Doctor of the Year 1999
Congratulations to Dr Peter Hick and his team at Eastholme Surgery on winning the Medeva sponsored Dermatology Doctor of the Year Award. Peter has become something of a local celebrity recently featuring in editions of Doctor, The Manchester Evening News, and The Stockport Express & Advertiser as well as a couple of interviews on our local radio station GMR.
As many of you will know Peter's Primary Care Dermatology clinic was established as part of the Hybrid Fund Holding Scheme and now takes referrals from almost 35 Stockport GPs, helping to reduce the demand for outpatient dermatology services locally.
Continued provision of the Eastholme Primary Care Dermatology Clinic is currently being reviewed as part of the PCGs review of In House Services. Perhaps, national recognition will encourage our PCGs to identify a way to expand access to this type of service Stockport wide.
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Nomad - The Continuing Saga!
No this is not a Star Trek episode but the continuing negotiations with the LPC and Social Services about monitored dosage systems.
There have been several meetings trying to reach a mutually satisfactory solution. Such a policy would avert the task of providing weekly scripts, a position which is convenient for the carers and rest homes, but which has been dumped into general practice without the provision of resources.
If we cannot come to a satisfactory agreement then the LMC will suggest guidelines.
We should remember, there is no obligation under our terms of service to provide weekly scripts. We have complied to date simply as a goodwill gesture helping vulnerable patients. Unfortunately, now our good will has been taken advantage of.
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Fringe Patients
Recent LMC discussions with Stockport Health Authority have concluded that GPs with patients outside the Health Authority's boundaries should be encouraged to register with the appropriate Health Authority where their fringe patients reside.
This will ensure the appropriate health authority meets the costs for both Primary and Secondary Care.
Any difficulties registering as a fringe GP should be referred to Margaret Watkiss at Stockport Health Authority.
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Mirena IUD - The Prescribing Dilemma
Because the Family Planning department has been insufficiently (dare we say inadequately?) funded, it is unable to fit the Mirena IUD unless obtained on prescription from the patient's GP.
Hence, GPs are forced into a corner, prescribing a drug that they may be unfamiliar with (which is why the patient may have been directed to family planning in the first place!) and sharing legal liability for administration.
This untenable situation has been raised with the Health Authority and PCG commissioning leaders, Drs Glicher (West), Azmy (North) and Ghafoor (East).
At the time of writing it is hoped that adequate funding will be arranged within this financial year to stop GPs being used to paper over the cracks in Health Service funding.
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Dr Shipman
Stockport Health Authority have requested that any approaches for information or comment in connection with the Dr Harold Shipman case should be declined and immediately reported to the Health Authority.
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The Derek Caldwell Lecture Theatre
Many of you will have noticed the naming of one of the lecture theatres in Pinewood House as The Derek Caldwell Lecture Theatre. As far as the LMC is aware there was no consultation with GPs, consultants or the PostGraduate Centre Steering Committee.
The Stockport Medical Educational Trust raised £250K for the building of Pinewood House, as far as we know there was an absence of donations and covenants from NHS managers and administrators. Dr Tom Brogan set up the charity (which still exists), surely it would have been more appropriate to have a lecture theatre named after someone who contributed to medical education, was instrumental in establishing The Stockport Medical Educational Trust or The Postgraduate Centre.
Whilst Derek Caldwell is a nice enough bloke and was a competent trust chief executive, as far as we know he had no particular interest in education.
How can someone have the arrogance to make the decision without consulting the stakeholders, is this shape of things to come?
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Practice Staff Budget Payments
Your LMC is pleased to advise that former non-fund holding practices will now also receive their staff budget payment around the 20th of each month in line with former fund holding practices.
Furthermore, to allow for Millennium Payroll Planning we have been advised that the December payment will be made to Practice Accounts on December 13th.
Remember to contact your bank to confirm dates for your final 1999 payroll run.
Clinical Governance is a term we have all heard on many occasions over the last 18 months but what relevance does it have to us practising GPs?
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Out Patient Appointments - Requests to Expedite
We believe the Acute Trust is encouraging our patients to approach us and obtain letters to expedite hospital out patient appointments. Letters have been exchanged with the former Stockport Health Authority Director of Commissioning, Leigh Griffin, & the Acute Trust.
Typically, the latter strenuously denies the problem exists!
Should you encounter any instances of such behaviour please advise your LMC.
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Internet Medical Register
We understand that the General Medical Council wrote to doctors in June this year about its intention to publish the medical register, which is a document available to the public, on the Internet.
If doctors are concerned about the availability of their current registered address on the Internet, they can provide the GMC with an alternative. Telephone the GMC on 0207 915 3604 fax on 0207 915 3640, or e-mail:
gmc@gmc-uk.org.
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Increasing NHS Pension Costs
You may be aware that the Employers Contribution in respect of the NHS Pension Scheme will be increasing from 4% of pensionable pay to 5% from April 2000 and then to 7% from April 2001.
Your LMC is currently seeking confirmation from Stockport Health Authority that Practice Staff Budgets will be uplifted to fully cover this increase.
We will of course keep you informed!
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Wanted!! - Tradesmen & Odd Jobbers
Do you know a good plumber, carpenter, builder or general odd job man?
Your LMC has received a number of requests to establish a register of reliable tradesmen.
We hope to maintain a list of recommended local tradesmen which we will list on the Stockport LMC web site.
We will only list practice recommended tradesmen so please send us in details.
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Season Greetings
Ranjit, Keith, David, Paul and Val extend their Best Wishes to all our Readers for Christmas and a prosperous New Millennium.
See you all in 2000.
Thanks to our Newsletter and Internet sponsors,
Manchester Business Machines Ltd
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