• Sorting all clinical post and prioritising for the GP in terms of actions. Signposting some post to others such as Clinical Pharmacist etc.
• Extracting all information from clinical letters that needs coding and adding to notes
• Arranging appointments, referrals, tests and follow up appointments of patients
• Preparing patients prior to going in to see the GP, taking a brief history and basic readings in readiness for the GP appointment.
• Dipping urine, taking blood pressure, ECGs & phlebotomy
• Completing basic (non-opinion) forms and core elements of some forms for the GP to approve and sign such as insurance forms, mortgage, benefits agency forms etc.
• Explaining treatment procedures to patients
• Helping the GP liaise with outside agencies e.g. getting an on-call doctor on the phone to ask advice or arrange admission while the GP can continue with their consultation(s)
• Support the GP with immunisations/wound care
Please note that in some areas the role combines administrative tasks with basic clinical duties. In other areas, the focus of the role is on non-clinical activities.
- Supporting GPs
- Basic clinical skills
- Administration
- Effective communication
- Managing health records
- Participate in annual individual performance reviews
e-Learning for Healthcare
The following resources can be accessed via e-Learning for Healthcare (e-LfH). E-LfH provides free e-learning programmes which can support you in your professional development.
If you do not already have an account, click here to register using your NHS email address. If you already have an account, please use the same link to firstly log in to access the following resources.
- General Practice Assistant Accredited Training Programme: The ‘GPA Skills certificate’ is an accredited training programme based on a competency framework covering 5 clinical and non-clinical domains. The content of the programme can be found here and please see a guide to completing the portfolio.
- Mental Health Awareness Programme: This short programme aims to raise the awareness of mental health amongst health care staff. It is designed to give a broad overview of what encompasses mental illness, the link between mental and physical health diagnoses and outline some possible treatment options. These sessions also provide all staff working within health care with some general strategies to help support individuals who are worried about their mental health, and advice about where to find extra support.
- Care Certificate: This programme offers learning materials to support the development of knowledge, skills and behaviours required to achieve all 15 Standards of the Care Certificate
- What is primary care: This session will introduce you to the world of primary care, the changes that are happening and the challenges for the future.
- NHS continuing healthcare: This e-learning resource is designed to enhance and develop the knowledge and application of NHS Continuing Healthcare to all practitioners involved in the breadth of the process and to provide a uniform approach to a national standard.
- Making Every Contact Count: The MECC e-learning programme is designed to support learners in developing an understanding of public health and the factors that impact on a person’s health and wellbeing. It focuses on how asking questions and listening effectively to people is a vital role for us all.
The role of a GP assistant will vary a lot between different practices; in some areas the role will be more clinical, however some will be more administrative. When you know more about what your role will entail, you can tailor your e-learning experience to your requirements.
These lists are not exhaustive and the programmes available are regularly updated, so we recommend visiting the e-LfH portal and reviewing the available resources via using the “View full catalogue” function, or the “Search the e-learning" function.
If you currently work in primary care, and have found e-learning resources that were helpful, and were not included on the above lists, please let us know on traininghub.nenc@hee.nhs.uk and we will update this resource so that it can be of use to others.
The learner will work through competencies within the GPA framework and upload their evidence onto an online portal for their GP mentor to mark their work. We are able to provide frameworks for clinical and non-clinical GPA’s.
Practices who wish to support their staff to undertake the GPA framework should give careful consideration on choosing a GP mentor for the GPA.
The GP mentor needs to dedicate time to work through the modules and teach the learner. This can be outsourced to other members of the team such as Practice Nurse for certain clinical areas or the Practice Manager for certain admin areas for example.
The GP mentor will be logging on to the portal and marking the learner as competent so they need to be suitably assured.
A work-based learning programme has been developed that typically takes 6-9 months to complete. Learning takes place in the practice, led and assessed by a GP mentor.
• Learners are usually existing staff with some experience of general practice (such as HCAs or receptionists) who are upskilling to the GPA role
• Learners are expected to have 1 day per week of protected time to learn their new skills. This includes time to work with their GP mentor, for teaching and ‘hands on’ experience (half a day) and time to upload their evidence of competence to the online platform (half a day).
• A GPA certificate is awarded on successful completion of the competency-based portfolio.
Skills for Health will work with HEE and the existing Business Administration Trailblazer with the aim of establishing a sub group to submit an expression of interest to develop a Level 2 standard for Assistant Business Administrator GP Assistant. More information can be found here.
Chester University – accreditation of work- based learning and GPA certificate.
Practice Managers Association – development of non-clinical online training modules currently underway.
Growing demand for workforce solutions in primary care and the evolution of Primary Care Training Hubs presented an opportunity to replicate the GPA role at scale nationally. In 2019/20 Health Education England commissioned The West Yorkshire Training Hub to run a pilot for 40 learners across the Yorkshire, North East and Cumbria region.
The aim of the pilot was to have examples of the GPA role working in a range of practices across the region which in turn and over time will enable them to share the benefits of this different way of working with other practices in their locality. This was led by a Primary Care Training Hub in each region to host and coordinate the introduction of 40 learners across each regional footprint, with further expansion planned in 2020/21.
After the successful pilot in the North East, Cumbria and Yorkshire last year, Health Education England has commissioned another 40 places.
The GPA Scheme 2021 offers general practice’s financial support for education and training during the scheme.
The aim is to provide a consistent approach to developing the role, underpinned by a defined job description and competency framework to support work-based learning.
To assist general practices in taking this step of considering the appointment of a General Practice Assistant, HEE is offering a financial incentive of up to £2120 over a six month period per GPA. The purpose of the incentive is to cover backfill for the learner doing one day a week of study/training for six months. Also in recognition of the clinical time given to support the learner and any training outlay you may have. The scheme is open to the full variety of roles which practices may choose to develop into an GPA, examples include:
- Receptionist
- Phlebotomist
- Secretory
- Health Care Assistant
- Administrator
Professional Bodies Resources
This RCN have provided a library of resources relating to General Practice that could support a GP assistant in their development into and beyond their role.
Employer Resources
HEE developed the above overview of the GP Assistant role to show practices the different GP Assistants have made since its pilot and launch.
This report covers recommendations made in the development of GP roles, inclusive of the recruitment, training, support and development available for GP assistants.
This presentation provides guidance for those looking to have their employees complete the GPA framework. This covers eligibility, support, finance and FAQ's.
Nottinghamshire Alliance Training Hub have provided this video providing an introduction to the spread and adoption of GP Assistants.
Tools for Practice
This updated DES outlines the role of the GPA and what is expected from the PCN (page 108-110).
E-Learning for Healthcare have provided the a range of resources to support GP Assistants, such as reports, case studies, research and other online resources.
This document from The Queens Nursing Institute covers roles and requirements in primary care, in general practice and developing your career within general practice.
A framework specifying a range of core competencies expected of the General Practice Assistant (GPA) working within general practice/primary care.
Career Pathway
All education and training for HCAs in general practice must be aligned to the HEE District & General Practice Nursing Services Education & Career Framework (2015), linked above.
This document has been collated to answer questions around the GPA programme.
Jobs
If you are looking for a new position related to this role, we recommend checking both NHS Jobs and HealthjobsUK.
NHS Jobs is the official online recruitment service for the NHS in England and Wales, with over 30,000 jobs posted every month.
Hosted by trac.jobs, HealthJobsUK is among the leading job boards in the health and public sector within the UK.
