We stepped in to help practices after a letter from the Area Team threatened them with breach of contract if they used the out of hours service after 4.00 pm on Christmas Eve.
After taking legal advice, we are committed to support practices that subscribe to the LMC cover arrangements, and if necessary, we will provide legal services to challenge any breach of contract notices.
We understand there is pressure nationally on the area team backing but we are disappointed at their approach.
Typical of the response in practices was this message received in the LMC office: “Morale is so low, and this heavy handed approach is not making things any better.”
We have written to practices to outline the steps we have been advised they should take, including the information they should provide to NHS England, which we understand will ensure that they fulfill their contractual requirements.
Typically at this time of year, we are getting reports that GPs are overwhelmed with demand for appointments, but as usual by lunch time on Christmas Eve the seasonal surge disappears.
We believe it is perfectly reasonable for practices to use our service providing they
• take appropriate steps to inform patients
• have information supporting low historical demand from 4pm to 6.30pm on Christmas Eve
• have a duty doctor available for the out of hours service (CNCS) to contact if required to access medical records/medication details.
As an LMC, we feel our arrangements for Christmas Eve cover have significant merit. We believe that it is a fair, common sense solution that provides for the needs of patients beyond the requirements of the GMS contract.
We have also pointed out that practices pay for the cover, with the excess running into thousands of pounds donated to homeless charities.
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