Summary
This is the twelfth weekly winter briefing produced by NHS Greater Manchester to update stakeholders on how services are performing and how we work together to manage demand and provide care and support to the public.
Each week, the primary care data is updated along with the statement from Mark Fisher, chief executive of NHS Greater Manchester.
All services continue to experience significant winter pressures and planning is underway for industrial action between 24-28 February.
NHS Greater Manchester has asked people to choose services appropriately during industrial action and take simple steps to help ensure care is available to patients who need it most.
This includes using 111 online as the first port of call for health needs, and only using 999 if it is a life-threatening emergency.
This weekly briefing, produced by NHS Greater Manchester, aims to update stakeholders on how services are performing and how we work together to manage demand and provide care and support to the public.
An investment of approximately £2million has been made into additional primary care services this winter, such as expanding the community urgent eye service, urgent dental care, minor ailment schemes at local pharmacies and GP surge hubs to provide more appointments.
Primary care data
There are approximately 1,800 primary care providers, with a workforce of around 22,000.
We recently launched our blueprint for primary care to improve access to GPs, dentists, optometrists, and pharmacists.
There are approximately 1,800 primary care providers, with a workforce of around 22,000.
- Dentistry – of 235 practices reporting, 30% of dental practices are feeling a significant or very significant increase in demand, with a further 22% of practices facing extreme demand.
- General practice – of 275 practices reporting, 30% of GP practices are feeling a significant or very significant increase in demand, with a further 1% of practices facing extreme demand.
- Optometry – of 84 practices reporting, 7% of optical sites are feeling a significant or very significant increase in demand, with a further 2% of practices facing extreme demand.
- Pharmacy – of 122 pharmacies reporting, 24% of sites are feeling significantly challenged and 8% are feeling challenged but coping.
Providers across all primary disciplines are encouraged to submit a weekly sit rep, noting areas of pressure. This is also known as a ‘pulse check’.
Work is underway to encourage more practices to use the pulse check so that support can be provided where appropriate.
Providers can access support by visiting the primary care sitrep support page on the GMPCB website.
On Friday 16 February, Mark Fisher, chief executive of NHS Greater Manchester said: “We anticipate and are planning for the next period of industrial action to have significant impact on services provided across all areas of the NHS and wider care services. We are again working hard with our partners to make sure our critical and emergency services are maintained, as well as ensuring that patients who have waited the longest for planned care and cancer surgery are prioritised.
“Patients should continue to attend appointments including at GP practices as planned unless contacted to reschedule. Nobody should put off seeking urgent or emergency care during the strike, and key services will continue to operate. NHS 111 will be there to help people with all non-emergency healthcare needs and advice on where to get care from.”
