Innovative community health services help ease the pressure on GPs

Innovative community health services help ease the pressure on GPs New models of care for the growing number of people with long-term health issues are being offered around the country

Relying on family doctors to provide exclusive care to people with long-term conditions is becoming unsustainable. Around 15 million people in England live with a single long-term condition; the number of those with three or more is expected to reach 2.9 million in the next two years and most of them will be aged over 60. At the same time, a third of GP practices report long-term recruitment problems. Creating new ways of looking after this growing patient group has become imperative.

Innovative models of care managed in the community by other health professionals, and private and voluntary-sector providers, are starting to emerge and find a place in the integrated health and care landscape.

There is a growing realisation that health and social care professionals can’t do it all on their own. Continue reading... The Guardian