In 2021, Humberside LMCs published our report on the interface between primary and secondary care. The report highlighted that general practice regularly received instructions to undertake the contractual work of secondary care. This included requests to make onward referrals, arrange tests and investigations, and to issue medications. The time associated with addressing these requests was equivalent to 270 clinical appointments per week. In May 2023, NHS England (NHSE) published their Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care which noted that up to 20% of GP time was spent resolving interface difficulties. Finally, in Humberside LMCs’ more recent interface survey (2023), general practitioners in the Humber region were found to spend up to 280 hours per week (1,867 appointments) trying to resolve interface difficulties at a cost of £4,076,800. This data does not include the wider general practice workforce. As well as wasting precious healthcare resources, interface difficulties have a profound impact on the morale of general practice staff.
The 2023 NHSE Delivery plan for recovering access to primary care placed significant emphasis on improving the interface between general practice and secondary care organisations. Thus, there is both a need, and a mandate, for improving the interface between general practice and other health and social care organisations. The following interface strategy aims to do this and has been developed in conjunction with the findings of Humberside LMCs 2023 interface survey. The strategy therefore reflects the local needs of general practice. These short and medium-term aims will provide the infrastructure needed to improve the interface between general practice and other health and social care organisations.