Guidance

The Guidance Section holds a wealth of information on a wide range of subjects relating to general practice. We have tried to arrange the guidance as simply as we can but we would encourage you to use the Search Guidance facility.

GuidanceNews

Maternity Leave Changes

At the end of February, GPC announced a significant enhancement to maternity leave benefits for salaried GPs, following a recent unanimous vote by GPC UK. The number of weeks at half pay for maternity leave will increase from 14 weeks to 18 weeks. This change...

GuidanceNews

GPC Announcement on GP Contract 25/26

GPC England has accepted new 2025/26 contract in principle, as long as further substantial national contract reform is also guaranteed On Friday 28th February 2025, GPC England has confirmed that it has agreed in principle to accept the proposed...

Guidance

Patients on Lithium Shared Care Agreements (SCA)

The LMC has received concerns about patients on Lithium who are discharged from secondary care, and the practice subsequently have difficulty in getting further support from psychiatry. The LMC has raised this with Dr Samantha Hamer, Associate Medical Director,...

Guidance

Guidance on Nursing Home Flags

PCSE provided guidance on nursing home flags to ensure appropriate payment is received. The article is below: Patients who reside in Nursing Homes, or other Residential Institutions, attract an uplift in Global Sum payments for a GP Practice. For this uplift to be...

GuidanceNews

Tripartite annual flu letter for 2025/26

The tripartite annual flu letter for 2025/26 has been published today (13.02.25).  Please see link below.  This sets out which groups are eligible for flu vaccination in 2025 to 2026, and which vaccine should be offered to them.  There are no changes to the cohorts...

GuidanceNews

Self-referring to NHS services in LLR

Residents in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) are being reminded that they can refer themselves to a range of  physical and mental health NHS services, without seeing a clinician first. Self-referral provides patients with more choice in how...

Guidance

Energy Company Obligation (ECO4)

The ECO4 scheme is a government initiative designed to help low-income and vulnerable households improve their insulation and heating solutions. Private companies have been reaching out to households through cold calls and direct mail to identify eligible homes,...

Guidance

Claims – Locum, Reimbursement, CBS

The ICB has recently written to practices regarding claims and as we near the end of the current financial year, to ensure all claims are submitted and processed appropriately, please find attached Practice Claims Schedule for the financial year 2024/25 for your...

Guidance

Accelerated Access to Records

Part of the Government’s imposed 2023/24 GP contract in England, included practices contractually obliged to provide patients with online prospective access to their records. Practices’ contracts require them to abide by this from 31 October 2023. The LMC has...

Guidance

Smoking Cessation Medication (Quit Ready)

The LMC has recently received queries from several general practices as patients have been directed to them to be prescribed Zyban. General practices are not commissioned or funded to provide a smoking cessation service, which includes prescribing. As it is not...

Guidance

Private weight loss clinics (Wegovy/Mounjaro)

The LMC has been contacted by several practices concerned about private weight loss clinics writing to practices asking them for information about whether a patient has any contraindication to be prescribed medication (Wegovy/Mounjaro). The responsibility to decide...

Guidance

MEDICAL EXAMINER SERVICE UPDATE – January 2025

UPDATE BY DR GRANT INGRAMS, LLR LMC CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER The LMC have been consulting with the ME service, coroners, registrar service, and funeral directors about feedback following the change in the death processes from September 2024. Just as a reminder this...

Guidance

Minor Surgery DES

The LMC Board continues to consider our strategy for Minor Surgery from April 2025. We have written to Dr Caroline Trevithick (CEO, LLR ICB) to request to commence discussions for 2025/26. In addition, we are liaising with other LMCs and have highlighted this with...

Guidance

Practice Managers Support

We recognise that the Practice Managers are usually the heart of General Practice, but the role is often described as isolating and expectations and workload are forever increasing. The LMC is here to support Practice Managers as much as we can,...

Guidance

48hr Wheezy Children

BACKGROUND The LMC receives a number of complaints from practices in relation to ongoing expectation on general practices to provide reviews to children 48 hours after being admitted or being seen in ED with wheeze. Whilst these are small numbers it is a clear...

Guidance

Local Practice Protocols & Template letters

Practice Protocols The LMC recognises that practices need to develop, adopt and implement protocols within the practice. We have created a library of different protocols which have been shared by local practices and practices are welcome to amend and adopt for...

Guidance

New/Retiring GP Partners

It is important that practices ensure they consider notifying the appropriate organisations when GP Partners are joining or leaving a practice. We have tried to develop a list of key contacts for practices/Partners to inform of upcoming changes within the...

Guidance

Payment for Safeguarding reports

Did you know practices can claim for any safeguarding reports submitted? If you don’t already claim for safeguarding reports, this is a reminder to practices should invoice the ICS for any safeguarding reports completed by the GP. a. Background The...

Guidance

Practice Mergers

Advice and tips for practices thinking about merging Be prepared to eat, drink and sleep mergers but remember that the majority of your staff won’t be at the same level as you so will need to hear information many more times than you might think is reasonable!...

Guidance

Removal of patient from GP registered list

The main pathways for a general practice to remove a patient from its registered list are summarised as a flow chart in Annex A. The number in each section refers to Schedule 3 of the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts)...

Guidance

Visa Sponsorship for Newly Qualified GP

The BMA has partnered with legal firm Magrath Sheldrick, who oversee our immigration advice service, to develop a webinar on navigating the GP sponsorship process. The webinar is aimed at GP employers and offers practical tips on how to navigate the current...