Exclusive: Almost half of PCTs are failing to pay practices the full recommended contribution for locum cover when women GPs go on maternity leave, a Pulse investigation reveals.
Exclusive: More than half of PCTs in England are considering scaling back their vascular screening programmes by switching from population-wide screening to schemes targeting at-risk groups, a Pulse investigation reveals.
Exclusive: NICE wants to push and pilot a QOF incentive for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease – despite recent research suggesting statins do not reduce mortality in people at increased cardiovascular risk.
Almost two-thirds of GPs offering extended hours will stop next year if PCTs remove funding, with over half of trusts considering withdrawing local funding in light of the Government’s scrapping of national access targets, Pulse can reveal.
GPs are being asked to provide evidence of problems or concerns they encounter relating to child protection, in order to help the GMC formulate new guidance on the ‘difficult and sensitive’ area of work.
NICE has raised the QOF HbA1c target in patients with type 2 diabetes up to 7.5% from 7% - conceding that there is sufficient ‘uncertainty’ about patient safety to justify the move.
Blood pressure targets in the quality and outcomes framework could be set to change as NICE seeks to align the targets with its own guidance, Pulse can reveal.
NHS managers have saddled GP commissioners with a 30-year contract with a private firm after controversially paying it more than £8m for a building it owned - and then leasing it straight back.