All practices are required to provide all their patients with a named accountable and accountable GP who will have overall responsibility for the care and support that our surgery provides to them.

The allocated named GP for all our patients is Dr O Shaikh, who will have overall responsibility for the care and support that our surgery provides to you. This does not prevent you from seeing any GP in the practice as you currently do.

What does ‘accountable’ mean?

The contract requires the named accountable GP to take responsibility for the co-ordination of all appropriate services required under the contract and ensure they are delivered to each of their patients where required (based on the clinical judgement of the named accountable GP).

The contract remains ‘practice based’, so overall responsibility for patient care has not changed. This is largely a role of oversight, with the requirements being introduced to reassure patients that they have one GP within the practice who is responsible for ensuring that this work is carried out on their behalf.

Does the requirement mean 24-hour responsibility for patients?

No. The named GP will not:

• take on vicarious responsibility for the work of other doctors or health professionals
• take on 24-hour responsibility for the patient, or have to change their working hours. The requirement does not imply personal availability for GPs through- out the working week
• be the only GP or clinician who will provide care to that patient

Can patients choose their own named GP?

In the first instance, patients should simply be allocated a named GP. However, if a patient requests a particular GP, reasonable efforts should be made to accommodate their preference, recognising that there are occasions when the practice may not feel the patient’s preference is suitable.

Do patients have to see the named GP when they book an appointment with the practice?

No. Patients can and should feel free to choose to see any GP or nurse in the practice in line with current arrangements. However, some practices may see this change as a way to encourage and promote a greater degree of continuity of care for patients.