January Newsletter

And a warm welcome to .......

Leeds Chambers Members

Khadijah Vachhiyat who joined in December and is due to start soon 

Laura Reid joined late last year and started her sessions this week

Katrina Smith joined late November and started her sessions earlier this month  

York Chambers Members

Saad Djoukhader has started back with our York Chambers last week

Helena Rawson joined late last year and started earlier this month

Something that’s affecting us all now is the mandatory training requirements that practices demand . As you know there is a long list of paperwork that PMs request so here’s a reminder from Sarah in admin, already sent in an email but you may have missed it .... 

Keeping Certificates up to date in Chambers  

We have noticed an increase in requests from practices about Member's certs and credentials, only this week we have had 3 practices contact us about out of date learning or missing paperwork and an increase of requests about covid vaccination status. 

Here at Chambers, we can help and update GMC/NMC redemption letters and even DBS/CRB checks so just let me know. 

We thought this email might help re the online content if needed. (Updated links for level 3 safeguarding Adults & Children)

To complete any Stat/Mand training via e-Learning for Health (this link should take you directly to the Stat/Mand catalogue).  

To get an account and full access to the suite of courses available via e-Learning for Health you will need either an nhs.uk | nhs.net | doctors.org.uk | doctors.net | hscni.net | ac.uk |gov.uk e-mail address or an OpenAthens account.   

If you do not already have an e-Learning for Health account then Lauren can arrange one for you.   

As you will know, Stat/Mand training is a bit of a minefield, onerous and let’s face it, a little dull. Requirements and refresh periods can vary from organisation to organisation so I want to be clear on what our expectations are and what you may face out in practice.  

Firstly, there are no nationally agreed Stat/Mand training requirements!  

• There is, however, the Core Skills Training Framework, but this isn't compulsory nor is it adopted by every organisation.
• Stat/Mand training is a local and organisational decision and is a contractual requirement when employed by that organisation.
• As self-employed, freelance GPs you do not have this contractual requirement in the same way.
• However, having said that, you would find it difficult to find work and to satisfy your appraiser if you do not demonstrate that you keep up to date with some of the topics.

Below is our policy and what we expect you to be able to demonstrate to practices.  

 The Medical Chambers Policy on Statutory and Mandatory Training:  

• Members must be up to date with and upload certificates for topics in List A as an absolute minimum.
• Certificates for List B can be completed/uploaded at the member's discretion. Please note, you may find that some practices will request evidence of these in order for you to work there, particularly the topics which have been advised by CQC.
• All topics can be completed via e-learning with the exception of BLS which must be completed face to face at least every 2 years.(Where possible, online if not)

 *Fire Safety - we do suggest that you request a local induction when working in a new premises/facility and make yourself familiar with fire exits and alarm testing.  

Pensions  

Carole is checking the pension details of members and has asked that all pensionable members to email her  admin@medicalchambers.org  to let her know your status regarding any pension issues you still have? 

Please can you also email her if everything is going well? 

Session templates  

Now that the booster vaccine surge and the extra demand this placed on practices is levelling out, we need to revisit the template for sessions.  

As a reminder, I’m attaching our current template guide that we send to practices on booking. As you can see this focuses very much on telephone consultations, with a couple of face to face at the end of a session. We know that many practices are now moving to more face-to-face work, so the template is up for review. We need a template that is clear and simple for us all to understand and which allows you to work safely with enough flexibility for practices to accommodate the local consulting demands   

We need to avoid creating bespoke session templates for either practices or members as this becomes impossible to manage and to scrutinise, should there be disagreements.  

Bespoke templates for members also risk inconsistency and confusion when several members are working at a site.  

We realise it’s hard to have a one size fits all but are looking at moving to a simpler template, possibly with 15-minute slots for any contact e.g. telephone, face to face or e-consultation. This allows the usually shorter telephone contact to “subsidize” the face-to-face contact and is easy to understand for members and practices. We had a discussion at a meeting in November and welcome your thoughts in tonight’s meeting 

Covid vaccination  

Just a reminder that the Vaccination as a Condition of Deployment rules ( VOCD) for Health Care workers come into force on April 1^st. Proof of certification is compulsory.  I’m attaching the latest FAQ letter from NHSE and the last date you can start a primary course in order to comply with the rules is 3.2.22. As you can see there a very few exceptions. 

In chambers we allow you to upload your status onto ImpaxHub which we can share with practices.  

If you have any questions or concerns, please do contact admin. 

Thanks to those who have sent in their apologies ahead of the meeting tonight its always greatly appreciated when you do.

That’s all for this month.  

Take care,

Hester and the Chambers Team