Maidstone & Weald PCT and others in the area are planning an April
1st "virtual" opt-out but local newspaper announcements of this,
stating that GPs would be working in casualty, new primary care
centre etc. etc. confused many of my colleagues with the mixture of
messages and they didn't bother to volunteer for co-op shifts, putting
the whole process in jeopardy.
The virtual opt-out allows a trial period during which the PCTs will
take over the funding of the co-op in return for a 6% deduction from
global sums and out-of-hours will be run by a consortium of local co-
ops covering Maidstone, Sevenoaks, Tunbridge Wells and Uckfield,
heading towards a new company structure. If the local GPs don't fill
the rotas the situation will revert.
The new organisation will use the experience of nurse triage in the
East Sussex co-op to reduce the workload and number of GPs
employed as time goes on and most of us plan to drop Saturday
morning surgeries from 6th March.
Regards
Stephen
|