One of the founding directors of the Institute of General Practice Management (IGPM) – Nicola Davies –has decided to step down so she can prioritise her goal of furthering the education and development of managers in primary care.
Ms Davies (pictured) will move away from her role as director at the end of March this year but continue to be education lead within the IGPM team, focusing on ensuring that ‘tomorrow’s practice managers have the skills, knowledge, and passion’ required.
She explained that she made the ‘difficult decision to step down’ to allow her to devote more time to the education and development of managers in primary care, which she said is her ‘true passion’ and ‘something very close to my heart’.
Ms Davies, also a practice manager based in Cornwall, added: ‘Supported practice managers are the cornerstone of every general practice, and ensuring we receive the education and development we need is crucial to our continued success. I have thoroughly enjoyed being one of the founding members of IGPM. Even though my focus will shift, I’m confident that my voice will still be heard within the organisation.’
The remaining three founding directors, Kay Keane, Robyn Clark and Ali Daff, said Nicola’s dedication to wellbeing and education has shaped the organisation, now four years old, from day one. ‘Her extensive knowledge of general practice has been invaluable, and her recent leadership in areas such as dispensing and rural practice has helped guide our direction’, they said.
The directors added that they will soon share details about recruiting new leaders to the IGPM to keep the organisation ‘agile’.
For a director position, they said they are ‘looking for a member of the IGPM, ideally with experience in rural practice, dispensing, or multi-site management’.
‘We’re particularly keen to hear from ethnic minorities, or those from underrepresented groups, though we are open to anyone with the passion and skills to help drive us forward,’ the directors added.
Last month, the IGPM attended the Parliamentary launch of a white paper on the general practice workforce, which found that GP surgeries are suffering shortfalls in key clinical roles as well as practice managers.
The directors said their attendance was ‘a monumental moment for all of us — a moment we could never have reached without our members and supporters’.
