Giving GP fundholders the power to purchase community nursing services can improve teamwork, argue two FHSA nurse advisers
When the GP Fundholding Scheme was extended to allow GP fundholders to purchase a wider range of services on April 1, 1993, a milestone was marked in the history of community nursing services. It was anticipated that giving fundholders the opportunity to purchase district nursing and health visiting, as well as mental health and counselling services, would bring benefits. These would include:
Improved communications between professional groups
Definition of shared goals and objectives
Better understanding of the respective contributions to patient care of GPs, practice nurses and the contracted groups
Agreements about attachments of community nurses to primary health care (PHC) teams
Multidisciplinary training and team development and closer integration of primary and secondary care
PHC teams could plan more effectively for patients and improve the quality of care.
Primary Health Care. 4, 6, 12-15. doi: 10.7748/phc.4.6.12.s9
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