Whither the Fuller Stocktake?

Where are we going with the Fuller Stocktake Report on the future of Primary Care?

The Report set out, in very clear terms the practical actions that Integrated Care Systems and health leaders can take to help deliver a new vision for primary care. The vision focussed on four key areas:

– Neighbourhood teams aligned to local communities
– Streamlined and flexible access for local people
– Proactive, personalised care for people with more complex needs
– A more ambitious and integrated approach to prevention

All of these key areas seem to resonate with what I have been hearing from patients, carers and the public. It is also in sympathy with the many discussions I have had with NHS colleagues

It is clear that there will need to be a serious commitment to effective engagement, building on the foundations of goodwill that already exist.

It seems to me that we will also need a system-wide approach to workforce, data and estates to make more effective use of capacity and capability.

It may also need some reform of contracting and funding which may cause difficulties in pushing forward with real integration.

None of this is easy in a system under pressure. Nonetheless I was quite taken with the potential of the Report and agreed with so much of it. I was also excited by what it might mean for patients and GPs alike.

I am concerned that I have heard very little about it more recently and the potential for real impact that it has could diminish over time. I would hate to see that happening and I am asking if there is anything we can do to help?