Exclusive A GP has been threatened with removal from the medical performers list due to exclusively working for an ambulance trust.
Newcastle GP Dr Phil Brown has been working for North East Ambulance Service since 2017, providing out-of-hours clinical advice via NHS 111 to the public, paramedics and nursing teams.
Last month, he was notified by NHS England’s Professional Standards that his current work as clinical advisor resulted in ‘an absence from NHS primary medical services’ from 2017, meaning that his removal from the performers list will be considered by a decision panel later this month.
Dr Brown told Pulse that the removal would prevent him from working as a GP in the future, since any GP ‘offering primary care in an NHS setting’ is required to be registered on the performers list for England.
According to NHS regulations, NHS England can consider removal from the performers list ‘after a period of 12 months absence from NHS primary medical services’.
But the BMA told Pulse would be ‘unfair’ and ‘absurd’ for a GP working in a non-practice setting to face ‘barriers to securing work’ in the future due to being removed from the performers list, especially during the current unemployment crisis.
It comes after Pulse revealed last week that GPs are working for free in order to stay on the performers list as a result of the crisis.
Pulse understands that other GPs working with Dr Brown have also been threatened with removal from the list.
A Performers List Decision Panel (PLDP) will consider Dr Brown’s removal on 27 May.
A PLDP report seen by Pulse said: ‘The grounds for considering the action of removal from the medical performers list is based upon Dr Brown has not provided NHS primary medical services during the period of full inclusion in the medical performers list, from 2017.
‘It is to be noted that NHS England may consider removal from the medical performers list after a period of 12 months absence from NHS primary medical services, in accordance with Regulation 14.
‘It is proposed that removal would prevent any prejudice to the efficiency of the services which those include in the medical performers list perform.’
Dr Brown told Pulse: ‘The whole process feels unjust and has induced anxiety and distress to those affected. They are trying to retrospectively enforce a previously unheard of regulation, and they are happy to call into question the skills and abilities of fellow doctors to do so.’
He pointed out that he is a GP taking on OOH responsibilities and said he was ‘disappointed and let down’ by the process.
He added: ‘Inclusion in the medical performers list is pretty much essential for all GP patient-facing roles, my current role in OOH required me to be on the list, and not being on it would seriously hamper if not prevent me from applying for other positions, especially patient-facing roles.
‘They have not given any warning of the implementation of the regulation and have not, to the best of my knowledge, any plans to trace individuals who have fallen foul of the regulation in the past, or how they intend to trace those who work for more than one non-GMS contracted service provider.’
BMA GP committee England deputy chair Dr Julius Parker said this situation appears to be another example of ‘damaging and unthought-through’ NHS bureaucracy.
He also pointed out that GPs working for NHS 111 provide ‘vital primary medical services’.
Dr Parker said: ‘While we’re unable to comment on specific cases in detail, NHS England’s own guidance states that decisions around the performers list should be made on a case-by-case basis.
‘It would be unfair – and absurd – for a GP, who has been providing urgent primary medical services working as a GP but in a non-practice setting, to face barriers to securing work in a practice in future by being removed from the Performers List, especially at a time when there is a GP underemployment and recruitment crisis and patients are facing challenges in seeing their GP.
‘GPs see patients in multiple settings – those working for 111 will directly book patients in to urgently see their registered practice GP where necessary – so these GPs are providing vital primary medical services.’
NHS England told Pulse it doesn’t typically comment on individual cases but they confirmed that ‘no decision has been made at this stage’.
I am not clear what the problem is.
If his current permanent and full-time position does not require him to be on the performers’ list, then he does not need to be.
I was effectively removed from the England Performers list several years ago (actually never put onto it), on the grounds that I live and work in Wales. If I wanted to work in England, I would have to apply to be put onto their performers’ list – just as does any GP Registrar completing training – so it should not be difficult.
The only grounds I could see for appealing this intent would be if he had an actual job in mind, or was in the habit of doing stints elsewhere, or if removal also removed access to BNF or clinical update opportunities?
It is nothing to do with competency or GMC registration with the denominator ‘T(GP)’.