Latest Updates

Latest Updates (most recent first)

Take a peek at our youtube channel for caperings from some ICB representatives at Scrutiny Committee…

At their quarterly ICB meeting, the ICB doubles down on its plans for “a new model of care … to support the Fuller Stocktake” that will separate “on the day urgent care where continuity is less important” from care for “patients with urgent needs & complexity / vulnerability or where continuity is important”. No promised community engagement plan was unveiled, downgraded instead to an “NWL communication and involvement plan” to be reported in the Autumn. Once again, no recording of this meeting is available. (16th July 2024)

In contrast to NWL ICB plans, new Health Secretary Wes Streeting promises “to bringing back the family doctor, so patients can see the same doctor each appointment, fixing the front door to the NHS”. (Guardian, 8th July 2024)

‘Opposition to North West London experiment is still growing’ – read John Lister’s blistering taking apart of NWL’s claims about its plans to break up General Practice, and its expectation to replace trained doctors with physician associates (15th May 2024)

A&E departments are currently not suffering results of poor same-day access to General Practice, reports the Health Service Journal. In a trial conducted across 17 sites, NHS England found that the numbers of patients presenting at Emergency Departments without appropriately acute needs was just 4%. (13th May 2024 – NB. you will need to register for free to read this article)

Recording of Healthwatch event on Same Day Access hubs, with the excellent straight-talking John Lister, chaired by Cllr Ketan Sheth who also chairs the NWL Scrutiny committee (30th April 2024)

The Pulse breaks the story that at an online meeting in March NWL ICB representatives threatened GPs with GMC guidelines over their “making patients anxious” by expressing concerns about the new proposals (with excellent reader comments thread!) (26th April 2024)

ICB Board meeting held in Hillingdon with last minute inadequate webcasting and no subsequent recording (but SOFD has a transcript!). The ICS confirms to partners that it is pressing ahead regardless of a lack of evidence. Rob Hurd repeats his baseless claims that the changes are mandated by national NHS policy. (17th April 2024)

The Pulse reports that Health Minister Andrea Leadsom has rebutted NWL ICB CEO Rob Hurd’s assertion that these changes are “national policy” (18th April 2024)

RBKC MP Felicity Buchan launches a campaign and another petition against the proposed changes: “I believe that we need to retain the link between patients and their GP surgeries. I am very concerned by the lack of consultation on these far-reaching proposals.” (11th April 2024)

A mysterious new ‘Stakeholder Briefing’ appears on the NWL ICB website, dated 19th (or 20th) March but not posted until early April. It is different in tone to the 27th March “your questions answered” document to local GP Clinical Directors, but only seems to actually contradict the latter as regards any serious pilot-project evaluation being possible or in the pipeline. At the same time, this ‘Briefing’ announces that the ICB plans to throw “national and local money” at pushing its call-centre hub model for North West London. (3rd April 2024)

ICB “your questions answered” letter to GP local clinical directors makes clear the ICB’s intentions and proposals remain basically unchanged (27th March 2024)

Yet another ICB joins the anti-Family-Doctor cavalcade: The Pulse reports on similar plans in Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB (26th March 2024)

The Pulse reports on ICB CEO Rob Hurd’s claim to NWL Scrutiny Committee meeting at Brent Civic Centre on 14th March that same day hubs are a “national directive” (21st March 2024)

Hammersmith & Fulham Save Our NHS (HAFSON) Press Release on the occasion of NWL ICB’s partial climbdown (6th March 2024)

Concession!: NWL ICB letter to practices now decouples the plans from this year’s Single Offer to GP Surgeries (5th March 2024)

Incisive & nuanced commentary by Ealing Save Our NHS (1st March 2024)

The Guardian, “GP Hub plan sparks patient safety concerns” (29th Feb 2024)

The BBC first picks up the story (29th Feb 2024)

The London Medical Council‘s comprehensive reply to the NWL ICB’s responses to their concerns (of 19th February), which finds their questions unanswered and fears not allayed (27th February 2024)

ICB reply to Brent Patient Voice (20th Feb 2024)

ICB’s first reply to London Medical Council’s concerns (19th Feb 2024)

Queen’s Park Area Residents Association respond (with strong detail) (19th Feb 2024)

“Row over exclusion of GPs from ‘improved’ GP services” – The Lowdown (16th Feb 2024)

Concise brilliant analysis from Oxford GP Helen Salisbury: ‘Levelling down general practice” in The Britsh Medical Journal (13th Feb 2024)

9-page letter of concern from the London Medical Council about the planned changes to the NWL ICB (9th Feb 2024)

The news first breaks publicly: “GP practices to stop same-day care as ICS effectively mandates new service” in The Pulse (7th Feb 2024)

The ICB announces the scheme to Clinical Directors of Primary Care Networks (PCNs) in North West London (undated, sent in advance of a meeting with KPMG consultants on 29th January 2024)

Some other evidences and arguments (in rough order of significance and “fun”)

‘The Future of General Practice’, Report by the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee – chaired by Jeremy Hunt – skewers the entire premise of the ICB’s proposed changes in its report dated October 2022. (Also see the Summary extracted here.)

Comedian Chris Morris nails the case for Family Doctoring in this laugh-out-loud address to the annual conference of the Representatives of Local Medical Councils, 23rd Nov 2023 (skip past the intro to hear Chris)

“Seeing the same GP improves patient health” (The Guardian, 23rd Feb 2024)

More research is needed before anyone should claim that only “some” patients need continuity in Primary Care (BJGP Open, accepted 23rd Feb 2024)

Proving that the new “model” is not locally designed – West Berks, Oxon & Bucks (BOB) unveil the same plan from the same consultants from NHSE working for KPMG!