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All practices will benefit from support package, promises Simon Stevens
NHS chief rejects GPC claim support package is ‘weak on immediate help’
16:20 The LMCs Conference agenda has just been published, outlining the key issues that will be voted on.
One of the motions put forward by the Mid Mersey LMC calls on health secretary Jeremy Hunt to abandon his plans for ‘eight days a week’ in favour for ‘Let it be’.
The motion
MID MERSEY: That conference believes the Health Secretary should abandon his plans for “Eight days a week” in favour of “Let it be”, “With a little help from his friends” on the GPC.
Another motion which has been put forward is whether GPs should charge overseas visitors as private patients for use of NHS general practice, with any fees to be retained by the practice in full. Read Pulse’s full story here
Read the 2016 conference agenda in full
This year’s conference will take place on 19 and 20 May in London.
14:00 Have you watched Pulse’s full interview with NHS England boss Simon Stevens yet? Mr Stevens tells Pulse how the GP Forward View can help struggling practices.
11:50 The MDU has warned doctors of the risks healthcare apps pose, claiming it is difficult to tell whether such apps are reliable and accurate.
The defence union said healthcare apps have become harder to regulate due to the volume of them on the market.
Dr Ellie Mein, medico-legal advisor at the MDU, has outlined a number of key issues that doctors need to be aware of if they intend to recommend healthcare apps to patients, including:
- It would be prudent to suggest an NHS endorsed app so that there is some reassurance about the quality of the app
- If a patient attends a consultation with information derived from an app, make sure you listen to their concerns as you would if the information came from any other source
- If you encounter a situation where a patient has come to harm due to using an app that may be classified as a medical device, it is advisable to contact the MHRA.
11:05 Health secretary Jeremy Hunt is still very popular within the Cabinet, according to the views of Conservative party members, a new poll on Conservative Home has revealed.
Mr Hunt is positioned a number of places above his senior colleagues including Prime Minster David Cameron and Chancellor George Osborne – despite his ongoing dispute with the BMA over the imposition of the new junior doctor contract.
Jeremy Hunt continues to be viewed positively by Conservative Party members despite #juniordoctors dispute. https://t.co/nPXoOIxpBf
— Patrick Leahy (@pmrleahy) May 4, 2016
9:45 Google has been given access to around 1.6m London patient records, the BBC reports.
The new data sharing initiative – which was initially unveiled by the New Scientist– includes the full patient history of patients as well as their full names.
Google says it will use the data to develop an early warning system for patients at risk of developing acute kidney injuries.
The search engine giant subsequently plans to use the data to develop a new app that will alert doctors when a patient is at risk of developing acute kidney injury.
