Under the recent NHS reforms many health care commissioning and delivery functions have been devolved to the PCNs. These include the organisation of social prescribing to help meet the non-clinical needs of patients, such as education, exercise and social contact. The role of the PCN PEG as opposed to the Patient Practice Groups (PPGs) of the individual practices is a matter for local decision. In the mean-time, those planning the PEG wish to engage with local faith, community, cultural, tenants, residents and youth groups whose members are registered with one or more of the participating practices. The aim is to identify areas for co-operation, including to encourage patients to participate in the PPG activities of the GP practices with which they are registered.

 

Those interested in participation should contact the organiser, jaudan.izzo@nhs.net, to request an invitation, access to the recording or information on forward activities.

The agenda is expected to include:

• What is a Primary Care Network?
• What are the objectives of the Patient Engagement Group?
• Adult Social Prescribing services
• Access to services for the young, including teenagers and adolescents
  Invitation for participants to help set priorities for future meetings and activities

The top priority identified during the planning meeting before Christmas was to identify who is currently planning/doing what to address loneliness during lockdown - and its consequences. Reference was made to young mothers, single parents trying to educate/control adolescents, adolescents with neither space, privacy or equipment for home study, those in social isolation at home or in care homes and so on. Other topics included screening (all kinds), immunisation, self-care and available services for diabetes and other long term conditions and mental health. There was discussion about how the forward programme might be organised but this was left open until more could be engaged with the discussion.