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Another extraordinary year

As 2021 draws to a close it has been another year that will be remembered.  We can hope it will be remembered for the good points and the achievements.  There has been no bigger achievement than the successful COVID-19 vaccination programme which was largely led by primary care.  At the same time business as usual was maintained by primary care services, who always see the majority of patients, with general practice delivering over 300 million consultations per year, versus 23 million A&E visits, and that’s just general practice.  Dental, optometry and community pharmacy see many more.

Helen Northall

Services have been criticised for the change in culture, a shift away from face to face to on-line consultations, while these won’t suit everyone they have played a major role in keeping health care teams safe during the pandemic and many now prefer to access services in this way.  This has been a major cultural change and one that some patients and the public have found difficult to come to terms with.  As in any change, it takes time for peoples core values, or basic assumptions to change, and their behaviour at times has illustrated their attitudes and beliefs that they should be able to access care face to face, which has always been possible, but the front door became digital for many.  Accessing care differently is a change that requires a cultural shift that will take time to embed and the journey has started.  Transparency that there is a range of options available will support the next phase of change.  Supporting inclusion, especially digital inclusion is important to allow this change to embed successfully.

The successes of the year have been driven by front line health care professionals – delivering care, managing innovation and change to deliver vaccination programmes and to maintain services while keeping themselves as safe as is possible.  2022 will bring more change, but we hope building on the innovation and change to date, embedding the collaboration that we have seen, empowering local leaders and enabling them a voice as integrated care systems develop to shape resilient and sustainable services for the future.

PCC has been honoured to support the NHS during the pandemic, we are proud to have worked with over 7500 delegates attending our virtual workshops and events during the past year and supporting many organisations with additional capacity and capability when it has been needed.

We hope all across the NHS have a peaceful Christmas and we look forward to working with you in 2022.

Last Updated on 26 November 2021