The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) have joined forces to produce a special edition of the Future Healthcare Journal focusing on progressing primary and integrated care.
The issue, published by the RCP and guest edited by RCGP chair of council Kamila Hawthorne, brings together healthcare leaders and policy makers to author a total of 17 articles on topics including health inequalities in practice, how patients can lead system redesign, and how to improve the primary–secondary care interface.
The journal has been published at a time when demand in primary care has never been higher, with the average number of patients each full-time equivalent GP is responsible for now standing at almost 2,300 – a 19% increase since 2015. Despite this demand, GPs are working hard to deliver more appointments, with 1.56m delivered a day during October – 218,182 more per working weekday than in October 2019.
Dr Sarah Clarke, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said:
“Primary care is the first point of contact for patients seeking care from the NHS – so staff in these settings are often the first to feel the well documented demand and pressure we are all facing.
“We must take note of the practical suggestions offered by health experts to improve primary care delivery and better improve the interface between primary and secondary care. With thought-provoking insight, this issue of the Future Healthcare Journal allows for exactly that.”
Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of Council of the Royal College of GPs, said:
“This journal issue provides a comprehensive perspective not only of primary care as it is now, but what it can look like in the future. It rightly encourages working collaboratively across the NHS and social care system, leading to better care delivery.
“I and my co-editor Dr Imran Rafi were fortunate to secure contributions of authors who are renowned in their areas of expertise, each of whom have represented the significant challenges we face in primary care, providing innovative new approaches which work to influence and improve the care we provide for our patients.”
The Future Healthcare Journal is a triannual publication that builds on the work of the RCP’s Future Hospital Commission by providing a forum for debate around the delivery of healthcare. With a focus on improving patient care and management, the journal covers issues from workforce planning to quality regulation.
You can access the Future Healthcare Journal special edition here.