A GP provider running an APMS practice looking after almost 11,000 patients and a walk-in centre in Norwich has announced it will close down due to financial problems.
OneNorwich Practices, which runs the 10,948-patient Norwich Practices Health Centre and is the biggest provider of GP services in the city, announced yesterday that its business ‘cannot remain financially sustainable’ beyond this year.
It was commissioned by the local ICB to deliver primary medical services in Norwich and the surrounding areas including Norwich Practices Health Centre, the Norwich Walk-in Centre, a vulnerable adults service, a lymphoedema service and asthma in schools pilot, as well as other targeted patient services.
Norfolk and Waveney ICB said it is working with OneNorwich Practices to identify new providers to ‘safeguard the continued provision of these services’ so patient care is not impacted, and to ‘protect the wellbeing’ of its staff.
Until then, it said it is working with the local PCN to ‘continue to provide patient services through the transition period’ until a new provider is found.
Paul Wood, interim chief executive of OneNorwich Practices, which is part of Norwich PCN, said: ‘It is with great sadness that we have come to the difficult conclusion that OneNorwich Practices cannot remain financially and operationally sustainable beyond 2023.
‘We have commissioned the firm Poppleton and Appleby to work with us to close down the business in the most efficient way.
‘We will also be working very closely with the ICB to ensure an orderly transition and we will assist in the development of service transfer plans to safeguard services and transfer over as many OneNorwich Practices staff as possible to the new provider or providers once these are identified.
‘We will not be making any statutory redundancies until we know the outcome of the service transfer plans work.
‘We will be commencing a statutory 45-day consultation period and staff will be given support on talking thorough the options available to them.
Tracey Bleakley, chief executive of NHS Norfolk and Waveney ICB, said: ‘I would like to recognise the extensive work undertaken by the OneNorwich Practices executive team and board to mitigate the impact of its financial difficulties on its patients and staff, who have continued to provide high quality care to their patients during this very difficult time.
‘We are naturally disappointed that this decision has had to be made. Our priority now is to minimise the level of disruption to patient services and ensure that patients are able to receive the care they need.
‘We have been and will continue to work closely with colleagues across the Norwich Primary Care Network and OneNorwich Practices to continue to provide patient services through the transition period, whilst also securing alternative providers to take on the full suite of services that they were contracted to deliver.’
Meanwhile, an LMC is demanding a 28% uplift in payments for its local enhanced services from its local ICBs as GP practices are facing instability due to inflation and financial pressures.
READERS' COMMENTS [10]
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Dear All,
And what was their APMS funding per patient?
Regards
Paul C
Nothing that a cleverly worded NHS England target cant fix. Meanwhile I’m sure appropriate alternative services will be commissioned and new providers identified to ensure the highest level of service continues to be provided by a diverse range of highly skilled health care professionals. In the mean time call 111. Please do not reply to this comment. This mail box is not monitored.
Spot on Paul C
It should be noted it was the same CCG/ICB/NHSE board hopping GPs and managers often with their director titles that rushed and agreed to the implementation of these APMS contracts over the years in line with NHS England and who should now be pondering their responsibilities for these unravelling disasters.
Is this calamity not what most untitled GPs outside of these board rooms anticipated?
Expect the same with the decisions and the direction the Clinical Directors and PCNs are taking Primary Care in a few years’ time.
When you set up a Circus (PCN) then expect chaos if your only offering is a Clown Act .
APMS are typically worth 15-20% more than GMS contracts but a bad contract is a bad contract
Still there are so many unknowns
who needs Partners?
Gms was doing well but politicians needed to poke their noses and change things by introducing pms, apms , fund holding and new oooh service and walk in centre etc. original gms contract involved full responsibility to practice who managed ooh as well with help. Every one was not send to and e. We speak to doctor on call to decide next step.
Revolving door of commisioners awarding contracts to private companies in exchange for vanity management /board roles. Until commisioning sits with managers with no conflict on interest ( ie pre 2012) no incentive to halt the gravy train.
@ Paul Cundy: I found my spreadsheet of GMS 2019/2020, there were three practices with norwich in the practice name, the final number is the £ per patient per year for GMS equivalent basic pay [Global Sum + MPIG + Balance of PMS expenditure] / average registered patients:
Y02751 NORWICH PRACTICES HEALTH CENTRE ROUEN HOUSE ROUEN ROAD NORWICH NORFOLK NR1 1RB 40015 APMS No GP practice Urban 271.04
D83058 THE SURGERY 199 NORWICH ROAD IPSWICH (112) 199 NORWICH ROAD IPSWICH IP1 4BX 36251 PMS No GP practice Urban 102.41
D82071 EAST NORWICH MEDICAL PARTNERSHIP EAST NORWICH MEDICAL PARTNERSHIP ST WILLIAM’S WAY THORPE ST ANDREW NORWICH NORFOLK NR7 0AJ 36161 GMS No GP practice Urban
84.11
Wow nearly 3x the funding. That is mad. Thanks Dr Beerstecher nice to hear a name from the past. Hope you are well.