The Scottish government has announced £2.5m for ‘up-skilling’ general practice staff, including practice managers.
The investment will offer managers, as well as receptionists training on how to direct patients to the right service and to take on more administrative tasks currently done by GP.
Health secretary Shona Robinson has committed to investing an extra £250m in general practice per year by 2021.
‘We want to reinvigorate general practice and attract more people into the profession. We also want to shift the balance of care into the community, and general practice clearly has a significant role to play,’ Robison said.
‘By investing in the training of practice staff we can make the whole system more efficient, freeing up time for doctors to spend on their consultations.
‘We can also increase the skills of those practice staff and improve their job satisfaction.’
Dr Alan McDevitt, Scotland GPC chair said it was welcome news although it remains unclear how the Government plans to reach the pledged investment.
‘Practice managers, practice nurses, receptionists and health care assistants are all essential to the future of general practice.’
