PCNs eligible for ‘hands-on’ QOF, IIF and capacity support

PCNs and practices will be offered ‘hands-on’ or ‘on-site’ to help achieve their QOF indicators for capacity and demand, and the Impact and Investment (IIF) targets.

The NHS England scheme is intended to help PCNs better their use of digital tools to provide better capacity, improve triaging and telephony, manage admin and improve the patient experience.

Integrated care boards (ICBs) have been asked to ‘nominate’ practices and PCNs for ‘intensive and intermediate support’.

The four-tiered General Practice Improvement Programme (GPIP) offer would see some practices offered six months of on-site support, with PCNs eligible for up to 12 months of quality improvement support.

The GPIP – introduced as part of the May delivery plan for primary care access – is intended to provide support for practices and PCNs until 2025.

In its primary care bulletin, NHS England said this included ‘QOF quality improvement indicators for demand and capacity and workforce wellbeing, additionally contributing to the achievement of the IIF’.

The four offers, based on the intensity of the support required, include:

1. The universal offer (practices only)
2. The intermediate offer (PCNs only)
3. The intensive offer (practices only)
4. The capability building offer (PCNs and practices)

Under the intermediate offer, NHS England will offer PCNs ‘hands-on’ 12 half-day sessions over a three-month period to develop a ‘jointly-owned shared purpose’ and to understand capacity across a network.

These will also encourage a PCN to more effectively use their ARRS staff to build on their at-scale working.

Via the capability building offer, PCNs and practices would be granted ‘practical development programmes’ aimed at helping PCNs ‘managing change’ for up to 12 months.

Practices put forward for intensive support would see ‘on-site support as well as group-based sessions’ to encourage shared learning over six months.

NHS England said: ‘Many practices and PCNs have done amazing work to adapt to these challenges. GPIP is about bringing together and sharing learning from these areas. The programme will provide support to make it easier for other practices and PCNs to go through change.’