Contents
Items covered in this bulletin include:
- Advice and Guidance Enhanced Service
- New South Yorkshire Primary and Secondary Care Interface Policy - Please read and cascade
- The Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag Action Checklist
- Changes to the online GP registration service in response to the Infected Blood Inquiry recommendations
- NHS South Yorkshire's spring COVID-19 vaccination programme toolkit reminder
- Primary Care Diagnosis and Management of Idiopathic Constipation in Infants
- Mental Health and Wellbeing Support for Children & Young People
- Community Pharmacies Supporting Early Detection of Bowel Cancer Research Project
- NHS South Yorkshire launches Neurodiversity Network
- Pathways to Work initiative launches to help South Yorkshire residents into work
- Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Week 26 May- 1 June 2025
- Expansion of the OpenSAFELY secure COVID-19 research platform
- Introduction of Abbott Alinity M for Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) screening at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals
- Alert to all clinicians regarding increase in syphilis cases in Sheffield and surrounding areas
News
Advice and Guidance Enhanced Service
In March NHS England published the 2025/26 GP Advice & Guidance Enhanced Service - NHS England » Enhanced service specification – General Practice Requests for Advice and Guidance.
The ICB wrote to all GP Practices via email offering participation in this service (email sent to Sheffield practices on 17/04/25, Doncaster practices 25/04/25, Rotherham practices 29/04/25 and Barnsley practices 01/05/25). Practices need to return their sign-up form to syicb.syprimarycare@nhs.net as soon as possible. The ICB will then offer the service to the practice via CQRS. Please note that practices must accept the service in CQRS by 27th May in order to participate this year.
New South Yorkshire Primary and Secondary Care Interface Policy - Please read and cascade
The ICB is working with GPs and the local Acute and Mental Health Trusts to improve the interface between primary and secondary care. This work has resulted in a policy document that sets out principles and confirms the responsibilities for different providers.
This first version of the policy document in focused on four key themes;
- Onward referral in secondary care, community and mental health services
- Fitness to work certificates (Med3s) in secondary care, community and mental health services
- Prescribing and information shared between secondary care and primary care
- Communication guidance
The document is now available on the ICB website; Consensus and Policy on the Primary and Secondary Care Interface in South Yorkshire
This document has been endorsed by senior clinicians and agreed by the ICB Executive team, Trust Executive teams and the South Yorkshire LMCs.
The document is now being cascaded to all relevant staff across primary care, Trusts and the ICB – please forward this on as appropriate. Each Trust will also have their own implementation plan to raise staff awareness, address training needs and adapt process and systems.
The interface document will be updated to ensure it reflects changing local or national guidance.
The Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag Action Checklist
The Reasonable Adjustments Digital Flag (RADF) is a national record which indicates that Reasonable Adjustments are required for an individual.
The RADF Information Standard mandate applies to all health and publicly funded social care. It applies across NHS and independent providers, social care (as providers), and independent contractors such as GPs and dentists. It also impacts all health and care IT system suppliers.
Here is a useful checklist to help health and social care providers know what steps to take to start using the Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag in their local systems in line with the Information Standard Notice.
NHS England have built the Digital Flag in the NHS Spine (on the National Care Records Service) to enable health and care professionals to record, share and view details of Reasonable Adjustments across the NHS, wherever the person is seen and /or treated.
The Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag is for all people with a disability.
In September 2023, the NHS published a Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag Information Standard that sets out what all NHS and publicly funded social care organisations in England are required to do to implement the Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag in their services. The Information Standard Notice says that organisations must have processes in place to be able to identify, record, flag, share, meet and review and update people’s reasonable adjustment needs on their systems.
Health and social care staff can also access free staff training to implement the Reasonable Adjustment Digital Flag – helping it to become part of a standard approach to care and treatment for all disabled people.
Changes to the online GP registration service in response to the Infected Blood Inquiry recommendations
The online GP registration service has now been updated to support the identification of patients who may have been infected by a blood transfusion prior to 1996, and this will go live by the end of May 2025.
The publication below provides further guidance on GP practice actions in support of their use.
NHS South Yorkshire's spring COVID-19 vaccination programme toolkit reminder
Just a reminder that the toolkit to support NHS South Yorkshire's spring COVID-19 vaccination programme is available for you here - Campaigns :: South Yorkshire I.C.B
The toolkit provides consistent messages and template assets to aid public and staff facing communication in support of the programme. Included within this toolkit you will find, public and staff facing newsletter copy, suggested social media posts and graphics, posters, TV screen graphics for any screens you may have in public facing areas and further resources to help support the campaign.
We kindly ask you to help amplify the campaign through your channels up until the programme finishes on 17 June.
Primary Care Diagnosis and Management of Idiopathic Constipation in Infants
Our Maternity Services have advised that they have had some parents state they have diluted bottle feeds to treat constipation of their baby and that this was on the advice of a health professional. Diluting a feed can weaken the nutrition they are given. If the baby is bottle fed, then they can offer small amounts of cooled boiled water between feeds if they are constipated. Please see the attached advice for further information.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Support for Children & Young People
Barnsley Safeguarding Children Partnership has issued a publication detailing the services available to support the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people in the region.
You Are Not Alone details all the services locally that can offer support. See attached.
Community Pharmacies Supporting Early Detection of Bowel Cancer Research Project
11 Pharmacies across South Yorkshire are participating in a feasibility study assessing active case finding of colorectal cancer in socio-economically deprived areas. The Early DETECTion of ColoRectal Cancer in Yorkshire (DETECT-CRC) project led by a research team at Sheffield University enables participating pharmacies to offer faecal immunochemical test (FIT) kits to individuals presenting at pharmacies with at-risk symptoms.
For the latest news about the project please see attached May Newsletter.
NHS South Yorkshire launches Neurodiversity Network
NHS South Yorkshire's new Neurodiversity Network held its first meeting on Wednesday 21 May, welcoming colleagues with lived experience of neurodiversity, allies who want to support and learn more about neurodiversity in the workplace and any people with children or caring roles that support neurodiverse people.
Neurodiversity includes:
- Autism
- ADHD
- Dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia
- Tourette syndrome and others
If you would like to join the network, please email jennifer.raynor@nhs.net for more information.
Pathways to Work initiative launches to help South Yorkshire residents into work
Pathways to Work is a new South Yorkshire initiative designed to help out-of-work residents get into, or back into, employment.
Patients can be referred to the service via email or telephone; contact details below. Patients can also self-refer.
A partnership between the NHS, regional and local government, employers and the voluntary & community sector, our exciting pilot programme offers:
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a dedicated keyworker to help develop people's skills and confidence, and support in their job search
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specialist support to overcome any obstacles which may be preventing people from working, including health barriers
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a flexible ‘barrier-busting’ fund to help people to access work and stay in employment
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the chance to apply for local vacancies not available elsewhere.
Pathways to Work support is available to residents who:
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live in Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham or Sheffield
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are economically inactive (i.e. out-of-work and not currently looking for a job, and not receiving jobseeker support through Jobcentre Plus)
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are aged 16+ and have the right to live and work in the UK
Email: opportunity@sheffield.gov.uk Tel: 0114 229 6188
Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Week 26 May- 1 June 2025
The campaign aims to raise awareness of type 2 diabetes, how to prevent it, the complications risks and the groups at high risk of developing the condition. It will encourage the public to check their risk via the Diabetes UK Know Your Risk tool or, for those with a history of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus (GDM), to self-refer to the Healthier You NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme. The campaign also encourages healthcare professionals to refer eligible people to the Healthier You NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme – an evidence-based lifestyle change programme which helps people at risk of type 2 diabetes to reduce their risk through managing their weight, eating more healthily and being more physically active.
A toolkit of resources is available, including posters, leaflets, banners, and social media assets – join us by taking part in the Type 2 Prevention Week. Download your digital toolkit now and help prevent type 2 diabetes this May at www.diabetes.org.uk/get_involved/ diabetes-prevention-week
Expansion of the OpenSAFELY secure COVID-19 research platform
The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is expected to issue Directions to NHS England in the coming weeks to enable expansion of the research platform to other diseases, a commitment announced in November 2023.
Once the Directions are received, NHS England will issue a Data Provision Notice (DPN) to all GP practices, requiring them to make pseudonymised data available to the OpenSAFELY platform. This DPN will be mandatory and practices will need to formally instruct your chosen GP system supplier to make data available to the OpenSAFELY service. Please refer to the letter sent on Tuesday for further details.
Updates
Introduction of Abbott Alinity M for Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) screening at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals
The Virology Service based at the Northern General Hospital will be transitioning from the Hologic Panther to the Abbott Alinity M for STI testing from Tuesday 6th May.
The user will see no change to turnaround times and there will be no change to current pricing at this time.
The Aptima swabs will no longer be suitable, and the correct collection tube is the Alinity M Multi-collect specimen kit. This kit is used for: male and female urine specimens, vaginal swabs (low and high), oropharyngeal swabs and rectal swabs.
The change will be live from Tuesday, 6 May. To ensure a smooth transition of service, please ensure that any specimens are taken with the new specimen collection kit.
If you require any further information or clarification, please do not hesitate to contact the service.
Direct Line: 0114 22 69494
Alert to all clinicians regarding increase in syphilis cases in Sheffield and surrounding areas
The local sexual health and public health teams continue to detect both an increase in the numbers of cases of early infectious syphilis as well as a shift in epidemiology to include more heterosexuals, as well as gay and bisexual men and new migrants. Please see the attached letter from UKHSA and the Public Health team in Sheffield City Council about increases in cases of syphilis.
