What is a Primary Care Network?
Primary Care Networks (PCN) offer a new way of organising care, bringing together all local health and care services in a local area to deliver more joined up care to local populations (usually covering around 50,000 people)
When fully developed, PCNs will include:
- GP services
- Pharmacies
- Community health services
- Mental health services
- Adult social care
- Voluntary organisations
NHS Long Term Plan
The majority of PCNs were set up in July 2019 as a response to the NHS Long Term Plan published in January 2019, which proposed a new way of delivering health and care services. It has been driven by the need to create a more joined-up, less fragmented approach to health and care, making it more personal and closer to where they live.
What can you expect from your PCN?
Our PCN is known as the SS9 PCN and comprises a group of practices (Highlands Surgery, Eastwood Group Practice, Pall Mall and Dr Krishnans). Additional healthcare professionals are being recruited to work on behalf of Primary Care Networks. New roles include Advanced Nurse Practitioners, Clinical Pharmacists, Mental Health professionals and Social Prescribing Link Workers. By introducing a greater skill mix, local people will get more access to the support they need to keep people healthy and independent. Please look at our PCN website for more information on what we have available. LINK
The aim is to deliver better health outcomes for the local population, as well as a reduction in health inequalities.
In the future, we will also see doctors, nurses and healthcare professionals working collectively to try to anticipate a patient’s needs, with stronger emphasis on preventative medicine.