Practice team development: care navigation and signposting

NHS England has written to directors of primary care and senior CCG managers with further details of changes to the GMS contract for 2019/20. It includes notification of the one-off payment for indemnity inflation, changes to the value of QOF, global sum and out-of-hours payments, and the £1.761 per weighted patient for signing up to the forthcoming network contract directed enhanced service (DES).

The Safety Features Delegated Regulation, part of the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD), will apply in the UK from 9 February 2019. Healthcare institutions are required to verify and decommission medicines supplied or administered directly to patients. All GP practices “personally administer” some medications and the decommissioning of these elements are covered by the GPIT operating model arrangements and centrally funded. According to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) FMD requirements would need to removed from law in the event of a no deal EU exit as we would no longer have access to the EU system. FMD preparations need to continue “with appropriate caution” given the possibility of a no deal scenario, the MHRA says.