Primary Care Reform in England Will Expand Team-Based Care, Social Prescribing

Correspondent: Roosa Tikkanen and Adam Briggs

In a bid to transform how health services are delivered, NHS England will increase its investment in primary and community care to GBP 4.5 billion (USD 5.73 billion) a year by 2023–24. The NHS Long Term Plan calls for the hiring of 20,000 additional staff to help establish multidisciplinary teams at general practices, comprising pharmacists, physiotherapists, paramedics, and “social prescribing link workers,” who will refer patients to community services and activities such as exercise classes or art groups. A new patient right to web and video consultations also will be introduced by 2021. The reforms are anticipated to particularly benefit people with long-term and complex conditions.

• Five-year deal to expand GP services and kick start NHS Long Term Plan implementation

• Army of workers to support family doctors

• GPs create 100,000 extra patient appointments through Primary Care Network model