 How should you react when practice employees start a relationship? Solicitor Matthew Smith offers some advice |
 Employment solicitor Victoria Patterson explains what action practices can take against inappropriate use of social media by employees. |
 Adam Carter advises on minimising legionella risk and commissioning a good firm to help you. |
 Daphne Robertson of DR Solicitors identifies some of the cashflow issues that may arise when the PCT closes next year. |
 Gavin Jones of Blake Lapthorn summarises the legal principles behind providing free healthcare on the NHS to non-UK residents, and the checks to perform when registering immigrants. |
 Dr Amir Hannan explains how his practice has saved money and resources by providing access to records and self-care advice on its website. |
 Victoria Patterson, employment solicitor, gives some tips on how to attract, recruit and retain new partners. |
 GPs at the centre of the negotiations for the scheme discuss the implications for practices within and outside the pilot areas. |
 Professor Mike Pringle advises GPs on returning to work after a career break. |
 Dr Tony Kaye answers key questions on new prescribing IT. |
 How does divorce and estrangement affected consent and confidentiality issues when it comes to children's records? Natalie Hayes of the MDU advises. |
 To celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee there will be an extra bank holiday in June. This has been scheduled for 5 June 2012. So will you have to pay your employees for the additional bank holiday? |
 Practice management consultant Siobhain O’Donnell gives her guide to preparing successfully for CQC registration. |
 Dr Clarissa Fabre, president of the Medical Women’s Federation, gives her advice on managing the financial and professional risks for GPs who want to start a family, and on providing the optimal environment for career development. |
 Practice finance expert Liz Densley offers six ways to look after salaried GP employees in hard times. |
 Dr John Canning, chair of the GPC contracts and regulations subcommittee, gives his advice on the process of adding to a GP partnership. |
 Chartered financial planner Gareth Rose looks at four ways to manage your money in 2012/13, including one new riskier product. |
 Our GP partnership is breaking up after a few attempts at reconciliation. What should we do to manage the schism? |
 MDU medicolegal adviser Dr Beverley Ward explains the legal position on consent and confidentiality, concerning an under-16's script for the Pill. |
 One of your practice staff requests a flexible working schedule to fit in with her childcare arrangements. Are you under any obligation to accommodate the request and, if so, how do you go about it? |
 Dr Jayne Rayner and GP Dr Jim Sherifi, Tribunals Judiciary, give the lowdown on Med 3 |
 Andy McKeon, managing director of health at the Audit Commission, explains what the National Duplicate Registration Initiative means for GPs and list-cleansing |
 Dr Simon Atkins and Paul Williams advise on the small financial tweaks that can add up to big savings |
 A GP with an interest in patient safety, Dr Martyn Diaper, offers his tips on preventing infection during minor surgery based on new guidelines from the Healthcare Infection Society |
 Ingrid Saffin discusses the future of NHS property, and six steps to understand and plan for your liabilities when your PCT closes |
 Adam Thompson answers six key questions on service charges - what they are, how they fit into lease agreements, Tenancy at Will agreements, and avoiding being overcharged for bills. |
 A patient asks you to sign a certificate guaranteeing their fitness to exercise at their new gym. Are you obliged to do so? |
 A patient has been behaving in a troublesome manner and you want to remove him from the surgery list, how should you proceed? |
 This week the GPC turns 100 – and as the BMA celebrates, Pulse looks back at a century of GP representation through both the national GPC and local medical committees. |
 GPs now have to look far harder for to access funding if they want to develop their premises. In that context, this guide is written mostly for those looking for private funding (public funding may still be available and of course this should be explored) and this involves a different set of skills for a practice. |
 A policeman attends your surgery asking for the entire medical records of one of your patients. You are reluctant to disclose the entire records, especially since you are aware that the record contains sensitive information that is unrelated to the accident.Are you obliged to make the disclosure? |
 New rights for agency workers - in place from the first day of their employment in a surgery - might change the way your practice manages its staffing. Victoria Patterson from VWV Solicitors explains the new 'day one' and '12-week' rules. |
 Dr Steve Leung, a GP in Leicester and medical director of rLocums.com, explains the simple steps you can take to achieve better quality locum bookings |
 We are thinking of merging with another practice, where do we start? |
 Dr Nick Jones gives his tips for earning money by running clinical trials at your practice |
 Financial adviser Gareth Rose answers some common GP questions on drawings, savings and tax |
 Professor Gene Feder and Dr Alex Sohal talk through the systems every practice should have in place |
 Dr David Roberts gives advice on the practicalities and costs of setting up your own pharmacy. |
 Anita Sharma gives ten tips - including what to do with a MUST score - on nutrition and supplement management |
 Read Pulse’s special report for tips on new and upcoming indicators, dilemmas, managing QOF finance and next year’s A&E indicator. |
 The new QP indicators have presented some tricky conundrums for practices. Dr Russell Brown provides his advice |
 Dr Gavin Jamie gives some advice on annual QOF housekeeping to make the most of your claim this year |
 Assura property expert Andrew Darke on how you can prepare for CQC registration at your practice premises |
 Dr Richard More, clinical lead for the Productive General Practice programme, introduces three case studies that show how practices can cut costs and free up GP time |
 Dr Graham McAll discusses how his practice approaches patients' personal beliefs in consultations. |
 Scott Brunt, a practice IT manager in Manchester, explains how switching to digital dictation cut the time it took GPs to submit a letter after a consultation by half. |
 Dr Simon Atkins and Paul Williams explain how their practice won the Customer Service Excellence Award by improving patients’ experience. |
 A patient has returned to your surgery with a rash after receiving the flu vaccine. You discover she is slightly allergic to egg but wasn’t asked before she received the injection and was given the wrong type. What should you do now? |
 James Slater gives his advice on how GPs can remove a patient from your list in a fair way, avoiding the Parliamentary and Health Services Ombudsman. |
 The parent or guardian of a 9-year-old makes a subject-access request under the Data Protection Act to see their child’s medical records. Are you obliged to honour this request? |
 Solicitor Richard Buono explains how to avoid common mistakes when creating or updating a partnership agreement for your practice. |
 During a regular visit to a local care home, you are asked to administer the flu vaccine to an elderly resident. However, her daughter, who is visiting at the time, says her mother has dementia and questions your right to administer the vaccine without her authority. What should you do? |
 Dr Simon Abrams describes how to effectively audit out-of-hours staff using the urgent and emergency care toolkit. |
 You run a very busy practice and will struggle to administer the flu vaccine to all the vulnerable patients on your list, can you delegate this task to other practice staff? |
 Professor Mayur Lakhani explains how his surgery improved their end-of-life care procedures. |
 Medical accountant Michael Ogilvie looks at how practices can decide whether to carry on with a service |
 Dr Michelle Drage highlights five areas where practices can take practical steps to secure their future between now and 2013. |
 Dr Michael Dixon describes how his patient group promotes self-care and raises money for extra services in his practice. |
 Dr Neman Khan gives his top 10 tips on reducing the costs of clinical cover. |
 A receptionist at our practice claims she has been harassed by a male nurse. What should you do? |
 Whether it is years away, or just round the corner, use our special report on pensions to get a head start on planning your retirement. |
 Accountant Rosemary Smith looks at the questions you need to ask yourself when investing for your retirement |
 Dr Julius Parker looks at the rules around this scheme to retire early |
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BMA pensions committee chair Dr Andrew Dearden gives an insight into what the Government plans for the NHS pension |
 Accountant Sean McLernon looks at how GPs can avoid the looming tax hike on pensions |
 Dr Mike Cohen describes how he set up a new clinic in his practice under any qualified provider |
 Who is responsible when hackers target your online appointment booking system? Data protection expert David Taylor advises |
 Dr Peter Smith advises GPs on how to reach satisfactory agreement with their PCT |
 You have been approached by a solicitor acting for a patient to make an assessment of their mental capacity to make a will and lasting power of attorney, but are uncomfortable about agreeing. What should you do? |
 Your partner's locked car is broken into, resulting in the theft of a set of medical records from the boot. What are your legal obligations? |
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Accountant Bob Senior gives his advice about what type of commercial loan practices should go for |
 Accountant Bob Senior goes through the options practices have for additional investment |
 A patient wants you to administer a flu vaccine she had bought in Russia. What should you do? |
 Behavioural experts Steve Martin and Craig Barratt look at simple steps practices can take to reduce non-attendances |
 Accountants Bob Senior and Deborah Wood go through the factors you should consider before joining forces with another practice |
 Dr Stephen Clay explains how he radically expanded access at his practice – and saved £100,000 in the process |
 During a consultation, a child puts his hand into the sharps box and scratches his hand. The mother is furious. What should you do? |
 Solicitor Michael Rourke explains the changing legal situation for PMS practices |
 Our practice nurses are opposing our suggested changes to their working hours. Can we enforce this change? |
 Dr Mark Kelsey gives his tips on how to provide a more personalised service to your patients without breaking the bank |
 Your practice manager has requested flexible working, but you are worried this is not workable in your practice. What should you do? |
 Use figures from the Department of Health to find out how the Government's proposed rise in pension contributions will affect your pay. |
 You may think you do not have the time, but there are some small changes that could make all the difference to the environment, say Dr Tim Ballard and Dr Caroline Jessel |
 When is it right to treat to target, and how do GPs judge when an individual is best served by being opted out? Dr Bill Beeby offers his advice. |
 Decisions surrounding consent and capacity are often complex, with many grey areas. Dr Mary Church offers her advice on some tricky scenarios |
 Should you share information about an elderly patient without capacity, even if her daughter asks for it? Our expert advises |
 Quality accounts will be compulsory from next year. Dr Paul Grainger and practice manager Sheinaz Stansfield discuss their pilot experience |
 Dr Claire Shell and practice manager Verity Shelton explain the impact of CQC registration on their practice – and what you can learn from it. |
 Only a root-and-branch overhaul of care and long term conditions can save the NHS, argues Sir John Oldham. Here, he sets out how GPs can play their part. |
 In her final article, NHS performance coach Sarah Christie gives her tips on ensuring you sustain your new-found organisation skills |
As the Government looks to squeeze out even higher contributions from GPs to their pensions, it is time to look at other options for your retirement? Accountant Danny Cox advises. |
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Accountant Danny Cox looks at how to make the most of your savings during a time of low interest and high inflation |
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An employer phones your practice about a suspected fake Med 3 form that states an employee should refrain from work for four weeks. What should you do? |
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What should you do with patients wanting last minute vaccinations before going on holiday? A medical defence expert advises. |
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Specialist developer Rachel Beverley-Stevenson lets GP Dr Keith Hopcroft into the secrets of getting funding to improve your premises |
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Concerned about how to manage your dual roles as a provider and a commissioner? Dr Clare Gerada and Dr Dennis Cox give their tips on avoiding any problems |
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Accountant Jeanette Brown answers Dr Lisa Silver’s questions on how to tackle the biggest expense for practices |
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GP commissioners are likely to face increased media scrutiny. Andrew Harvey offers some tips on dealing with the media storm |
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A routine audit shows several ampoules of diamorphine are missing. The last entry in the controlled drugs register was made by the senior partner, who is well-known for his somewhat erratic record keeping, but also suffers from chronic low back pain. What should you do? |
DO YOU HAVE A STORY TO TELL?
Have you changed the way you run your practice, in a way that would demonstrate best practice to others? Or have you overcome difficulties by thinking innovatively and changing procedures?
Get in touch here and share your case study with us.
