Mark Howson
General practice responsible for £88m of fraudulent behaviour, claims NHS report
Claiming fraud is meaningless unless you give particular examples. Without actual cases it is fiction and if we were an individual libellous. As regards ghost patients we all know the system takes account of this and if you were to remove them completely you would have to renegotiate the GMS contract to uplift the payment actual patient. Indeed you can turn the argument on it head as the formula produces a factor of less than 1.0 so we are paid for less than the actual number of patients we have registered but we all understand it is just modelling. Any NHSE person who uses ghost patients against the profession is a either a political lying scumbag or thick.
Do fit notes benefit patients stuck with their benefits?
My position for a long time has been that we should not be doing repeat sick notes for chronic sickness. But when forced to in my standard fit note I state an illness (as a fit note makes no sense without an illness ) then I write- For the employer or DWP, I am not in a position to asses this person for work purposes please arrange an OH assessment.
Then I mark it indefinitely.The poverty of excess
The cheapest diet is vegetarian bought at the market. People do not eat junk food because it is cheap they eat it because it is convenient.
Superpractice to close surgery due to 'serious' GP staffing problems
One of the things a super practice is designed to do is close sites to concentrate resources and become more efficient at few sites. So not surprising really.
Embrace the NHS App as part of your practice’s digital toolbox
I downloaded the app and used it to get my blood results and book an appointment. I thought it was pretty useful from a patient’s point of view. Similar to the SystmOne app but better.
Doctors 'threatened with eviction' and left with 'no pension' due to Capita failings
Presumably Capita holds onto the money denying the exchequer about 0.5Billion pounds in money so far since 2014 and keeps it in its funds accruing interest or perhaps investing it. The most likely reason for this is corruption. I have written to Matt Hancock to point this out in case he isn’t aware. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if he had shares in or commitments to Capita.
I do not believe this is incompetence and believe it is criminal corruption.Halving pension contributions 'not enough' to avoid tax charges
It is not just the high earners. I earned 60k this year but had a 200k Tax Bill because my pension pot increased by 500k. The reasons are complex and related to the difference between officer and GP pensions. But a common way others can get stung is for their pay to go up due to a promotion or pay/income rise. The 40k allowance is not about your contributions but about your pension pot value.
Chancellor downplays hopes for pension tax reform
The problem that affects average earners is fluctuations in pay from one year to the next which can put you over the 40k limit as a self employed person. In my case it was a sudden change in the pension rules calculating my pension which led to a 200k bill as my pot jumped from 500k to 1,000,000 overnight despite an annual income of 60k. The pension people allow me to pay it over 20 years by reducing my pension. I win if I die before the 20 years is up!
GPs facing up to £50k in pensions tax bills as advisers report 'sharp rise' in demand
My annual allowance tax bill is £200,000 My only option is to ask it to be taken off my pension pot as I only earn 60k this year and so in no position to pay such a bill immediately.
GPs more likely to work 10-hour shifts at larger practices
A full time teacher averages 24 contact hours with pupils. But still work 10 hour days. In France a full time teacher has 18 hours contact with pupils.
Sessions seeing patients is not a measure of part time or full time. It is hours worked.15% increase in patients waiting a month for a GP appointment
Still far better than waiting list times for secondary care.. don’t forget that.
Practices still facing ‘extortionate’ premises costs despite negotiations
Just pay what you historically paid and no more. Do not sign a lease without considerable thought. NHSPS is poorly run and incompetent and likely to disappear.
GP at Hand set to apply to be single network in 'destabilising' move
The issue is equity of access and bad discriminatory practice. The principle of the NHS is equity. Babylon does not provide equity of access and so is currently not working within the NHS ethos. Video consults themselves are a good idea as they are better and safer than a phone call.
Treasury is ignoring doctors' concerns over pensions tax charges, says BMA
Drawn pension, left partnership, signed contract for 18 months in Australia xxx
GPs being funded to target 'frequent attenders' in bid to reduce workload
Be careful with tiny charges. Sometimes it makes the person feel they can use the service more and demand easier access as they have paid.
Removing pensions benefits is criminally stupid
What worries me is a breakdown in the social contract. Once the government brings in unjust rules people take things into their own hands to achieve a sense of justice. I think what has happened with NHS pensions- dramatic increase in costs, increase in clawback taxes and now this has pushed it to the edge.
Health secretary given right to suspend GPs' pensions before conviction
I don’t see why you lose something you have paid for even if you did commit a crime. In these circumstances are you allowed to claim back all the contributions that have been made to the exchequer. I also thought punishment was the responsibility of the court not the employer. Is this for serious crimes or does it include parking offences....
Homeopathy prescribing set to be blacklisted under NHS England plans
About time. I always thought anyone prescribing homeopathy should be stripped of their licence if they didn't realise the stupidity of their position after retraining. Quackery does our profession a disservice.
GP gender pay gap 'far higher' than average at 33%, finds Government review
There is no gap in pay between men and women for the same job. This has been illegal since the 70’s and I don’t see it in our profession. The gender pay gap is a result of personal choices people make in what they do and how they work. The problem in fixing it is that it will involve manipulating people to make different choices - overtly possibly but more likely through subtle manipulative nudges.
Digital GP consultations make spotting signs of sepsis 'a challenge', says PHE
The digital consult which of which a telephone consult is a subset is only ever a triage tool. Any patient who sounds or looks Ill will need seeing.
NHSE needs to understand that, while a FaceTime like consult is safer than a telephone call, the overall effect of adding more and easier modes of consultation access will be to drive up demand and ultimately drive up costs.
There will come a time where you are forced to have a two tier system of charging for ease of access or the system will collapse.
