Welcome
Happy New Year! Welcome to the January edition of the NHS South Yorkshire Primary Care Bulletin.
We wanted to start by mentioning our top news story, that Community Pharmacies across South Yorkshire delivered more than 90,000 Pharmacy First consultations between January and November 2024. This is a fantastic achievement which will have freed up some GP appointments for patients who need them most. Thank you everyone for your work on this.
We also wanted to mention our Integrated Neighbourhood Working event on Wednesday 26 February where we will bring together clinicians from Primary Care and Community Care with wider partners to explore and shape our understanding of this area. Please see the item below for further details on this and we hope to see you there.
Some other items we cover this month include a potential fraud alert involving GP patients, information about a £1million community fund recently launched by NHS South Yorkshire for North-East Sheffield and our winter communications toolkit which we are encouraging partners and colleagues to share for the remainder of the winter period.
We hope you enjoy this month’s primary care bulletin. As always, please get in touch if you have any questions, suggestions or comments.
Anthony Fitzgerald, Executive Place Director for Doncaster and Executive Lead for Primary Care, NHS South Yorkshire
Dr Andy Hilton, Chair, NHS South Yorkshire Primary Care Alliance
Items covered in this edition include:
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Pharmacy First – More than 90,000 Consultations Delivered Between January and November 2024
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Reforming elective care for patients
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Potential fraud alert
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£1million community fund for North-East Sheffield
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NHS and Partner Data Survey
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Pilot launch - Fetal exposure to medicines service (FEMS) for the North of England
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NHS South Yorkshire Winter Campaign Toolkit
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Folic acid supplementation
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Domestic Abuse Staking and Harassment
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USC Prostate Referral form
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Healthy Living for people with Type 2 Diabetes
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South Yorkshire Eating Disorders Association (SYEDA) referral form
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The Road to Genome podcast
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Integrated Neighbourhood Working: Building a collective understanding across Primary Care, Community Care and Partner Organisations Event
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South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire T2Day Monthly Educational Lunch and Learn
News
Pharmacy First – More than 90,000 Consultations Delivered Between January and November 2024
Since its introduction at the end of January 2024, Community Pharmacies across South Yorkshire have delivered more than 90,000 Pharmacy First consultations for the 7 clinical pathways, minor illness and urgent medication supply, with more than 19,000 referrals into the service from General Practice. Of these consultations, 24,000 reported that they would otherwise have gone to their GP Practice.
The ICB, in partnership with Community Pharmacy South Yorkshire and the South Yorkshire Community Pharmacy Forum, continues work to further maximise delivery of the service, as part of the Primary Care Access and Recovery Plan. The local programme plan aims to improve consistency & quality of service delivery, raise patient and public awareness and increase provider engagement for referrals into the service. Local implementation is being supported through facilitating relationships between Community Pharmacies & GP Practices and agreeing local protocols that work for both GP Practices & Community Pharmacies.
If you would like to discuss the local support available, please contact info@cpsy.org.uk
Reforming elective care for patients
NHS England has set out plans about how the NHS will reform elective care services and meet the 18 week referral to treatment standard by March 2029.
Under this plan elective care will be increasingly personalised and digital. There will be a focus on improving experience and convenience, empowering people with choice and control over when and where they will be treated.
Different models of care will be more widely and consistently adopted. The use of artificial intelligence and other technology to deliver care will be more widespread and will help boost productivity.
NHSE will also reform how elective care is overseen and funded. Money will increasingly follow the patient, and incentives will drive improvements in waiting times.
To meet the 18-week standard and reform elective care by March 2029, NHSE are focusing on 4 areas: empowering patients; reforming delivering; delivering care in the right place; and aligning funding, performance oversight and delivery standards. Each area is underpinned by a set of commitments for NHSE, integrated care boards and elective care providers.
https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/reforming-elective-care-for-patients/
Potential fraud alert
We have been made aware of a scam targeting patients registered with local GP practices. Patients have reported receiving cold calls saying “your GP needs to update your details to avoid you being suspended.” GP practices will never ask for sensitive personal information in this manner.
Read more here: Potential fraud alert :: South Yorkshire I.C.B
£1million community fund for North-East Sheffield
People living in north-east Sheffield will benefit from a one million pound community fund to support healthy and happy neighbourhoods in the area.
NHS South Yorkshire is investing the funds to support these communities to deliver what matters to them, to help everyone live their best lives.
Applications for the fund are now open. Read more here:'This is Us' :: South Yorkshire I.C.B
NHS and Partner Data Survey
NHS South Yorkshire, the University of Sheffield, and NHS Secure Data Environment conducting a survey to understand public perspectives on how their data is used by the NHS and its partner organisations.
Whether you have thoughts about how data is kept safe and secure, or how it is used to improve patient outcomes, we want to hear from you.
The survey takes just a few minutes to complete, and your responses will remain anonymous.
Survey closes 31 January 2025.
Pilot launch - Fetal exposure to medicines service (FEMS) for the North of England
A new pilot service has launched this month, providing specialist diagnosis and clinical advice for children and adults who have health concerns following exposure to certain antiseizure medicines before birth.
The pilot, commissioned by NHS England, covers the North of England (North West, North East, Yorkshire and Humber) and runs until March 2026.
The pilot aims to, through assessment of 100-150 patients: establish a service model; assess the impact of FEMS; and define commissioning requirements should NHS England decide there is a need for a national FEMS service to be established.
The pilot is being delivered by The Newcastle Upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, where there is existing expertise and specialist knowledge to meet requirements. Both teams are working closely to provide an equivalent service at each site.
Patients (child or adult) living in the North of England can be referred into the service by their GP or healthcare professional.
More information about the service, including Q&As, is available on our website here Fetal exposure to medicines service - Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. You can also read the service information letter here.
Primary Care Support
NHS South Yorkshire Winter Campaign Toolkit
Please find here our toolkit to support the launch of NHS South Yorkshire's Winter Campaign: Right Care First Time - Campaigns :: South Yorkshire I.C.B
We kindly ask you to help amplify the campaign through your channels during the remainder of the winter period.
Folic acid supplementation
Please follow this link for ‘Folic acid supplementation: advice to health professionals from the UK chief medical officers, chief nursing officers and chief midwifery officers’
Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment
The Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment (DASH) risk assessment tool has been redesigned. Please can you ensure:
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This DASH is uploaded to all systems and old templates are removed.
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All staff are aware of the latest version of DASH to use.
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Please feedback any issues with the form to Kayley.charlton@rotherham.gov.uk
Please click here for further information.
South Yorkshire DASH final version.
USC Prostate Referral form
Prostate cancer referrals remain the largest volume of work within the speciality of urological cancer.
Since the publication of the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) report Urology: Towards Better Diagnosis & Management of Suspected Prostate Cancer Guidance in April 2024, there has been a focus on ensuring the right patients are referred into a prostate urgent suspect cancer pathway.
The introduction of a separate Urgent Suspect Cancer (USC) referral form for prostate cancer was developed to support clinicians in ensuring the most appropriate patients are referred onto the pathway, as well as identifying which patients could go straight to a diagnostic test (STT),an MRI, without having to see a secondary care clinician first, therefore speeding up the time to diagnosis.
The requirement of the prostate USC referral form is that only one PSA is needed, rather than the previous practice of carrying out two., This will reduce the time taken to refer, and GPs do not have to wait weeks before carrying out second PSA.
Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) is not a requirement of referral. The use of PSA and MRI means that there are many circumstances where a DRE will not provide any additional value. This also means a less invasive approach for the patient. However, if a negative PSA presents and the patient has symptoms, GPs may consider referring and also using DRE as part of their clinical examination.
The prostate USC referral form includes MRI screening questions. These are not mandatory and will be checked in secondary care. However, if the MRI screening questions are filled in when referring, this could decrease the delay for MRI and help facilitate straight to test (STT), achieving patient diagnosis within best practice timed pathways.
Healthy Living for people with Type 2 Diabetes
Healthy living is a free online service designed to provide advice and information to people living with type 2 diabetes, to help them better manage their condition. The programme is user-led and offers an alternative means of accessing support to the more traditional, group-based structured education programmes.
It includes information and advice about:
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type 2 diabetes
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eating well
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becoming more active
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how to look after your body and mind
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other NHS services and support
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living with diabetes, including driving, working and travelling
People can use the Healthy Living programme whenever it suits, and for as long as they need - there is no limit to access so people can learn at their own pace. It can also be used alongside any other diabetes programmes or education.
Who is the programme for?
Anyone over the age of 18, living in England with type 2 diabetes, no matter when they were diagnosed. People who care for someone living with type 2 diabetes can sign up too.
Register at Healthy Living or click here.
Leaflet click here.
South Yorkshire Eating Disorders Association (SYEDA) referral form
SYEDA currently supports individuals affected by an eating disorder in Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster.
They have a particular focus on prevention, by working with people who might be at risk of developing an eating disorder in order to help them to become more resilient. They also try to work with people who are experiencing eating disorders as early as possible into the illness to try to stop the eating disorder from becoming more severe.
They provide treatment which may be one to one therapeutic and practical support for people experiencing eating disorders and for families and friends.
If you are a professional wishing to make a referral, please do this together with the client or alternatively please complete the referral form on their behalf, completing as many of the referral questions as possible.
Please see link to referral form: https://www.syeda.org.uk/referrals
The Road to Genome podcast
Series 4 of The Road to Genome podcast has now launched.
This first episode is an interview with the rapping Consultant, Clinical Geneticist Professor Julian Barwell about Fragile X, Cancer Genomics & Rapping
You can listen on the website, or any podcast platform https://ney-genomics.org.uk/about-genomics/podcast/
Events and Training
Integrated Neighbourhood Working: Building a collective understanding across Primary Care, Community Care and Partner Organisations Event, 26 February 2025
In anticipation of the imminent National 10 Year Health Plan and the focus on integrated working and neighbourhood health, NHS South Yorkshire are holding a dedicated ‘invitation only’ all-day event on Wednesday 26 February for clinicians from Primary Care and Community Care. The event will bring together Primary Care and Community Care with wider partners to explore and shape our understanding of Integrated Neighbourhood Working.
A full agenda will follow closer to the event; It will include speakers and other subject matter experts, including Nigel Edwards from the NAPC, with plenty of opportunities to learn from other geographical areas’ approach to Integrated Neighbourhood working and for clinical networking.
Recognising the knowledge, expertise, and experience we have across our system, this event will provide an opportunity for us to learn from what is working well in South Yorkshire, and to tackle the challenges/barriers we need to overcome.
This clinically led event will be facilitated by the National Association of Primary Care, who will also be sharing successes and learning from elsewhere in England.
Significant work has taken place across South Yorkshire to support the development of Primary Care Networks, we want to build on this. This is an opportunity to shape how integrated neighbourhood working will be developed across our Places.
Anticipated Outputs
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For Primary Care and Community Care to consider together what we are aiming to achieve through the delivery of Integrated Neighbourhood Working in South Yorkshire.
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To understand our current neighbourhood models and to learn from what is working well in South Yorkshire and elsewhere.
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To further develop our collective understanding of Integrated Neighbourhood Working to support delivery across each of our Places.
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To agree what needs to happen next to create a 'road map' for successful Integrated Neighbourhood Working across South Yorkshire.
South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire T2Day Monthly Educational Lunch and Learn
The T2Day is the Type 2 Diabetes in the Young programme- an NHSE 2-year initiative to improve care for people with Early Onset Type 2 Diabetes (EOT2D) affecting those aged between 18-39. These events intend to bring together colleagues interested in learning about T2Day and supporting EOT2D individuals to improve their health and well-being.
Eleventh Session – Tuesday 11 February 2025 12:00-13:00
At this session, you will hear from Dr Jackie Elliot, Clinical Lead for Diabetes, Senior Clinical Lecturer in Diabetes and Honorary Consultant, on the Misclassification of Diabetes alongside some case studies. Register: Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams
