Primary care networks: More effort is needed to engage with general practices, says report.

Abstract

The networks set up to improve primary care services for patients in England have good potential but have been held back in their first year by a lack of engagement from GP surgeries and deficiency in management capacity, a report has found.1 In July 2019 NHS England invited groups of general practices to join together as primary care networks (PCNs) and use new funding to offer extra services for improving patient health, including pharmacists based within general practices, additional GP and nursing support for care homes, and social prescribing. A new evaluation study of PCNs, carried out by a team from the University of Birmingham’s Health Services Management Centre and the research institute …