Primary care bulletin - 8 October 2025

Contract requirement to keep online consultation systems switched on

All general practices are now required to have their online consultation system available throughout core hours for non-urgent appointment requests, medication queries and admin requests.

This brings online access into line with telephone and walk-in, giving parity of access for patients and helping to reduce demand on telephone systems, freeing them up for patients who don’t feel confident to use, or have, digital access.

A frequently asked questions document and a Department of Health and Social Care blog been published.

Changes to maternity self-referrals at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

From 6 October 2025, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust will limit self-referrals to its two maternity units (Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital) to individuals living within north west London.

The change, supported by North West London ICB, follows a significant rise in demand for maternity services, including a large number of referrals from outside the local area. In 2024/25, births at the Trust exceeded planned activity by nearly 500, with a high proportion of patients from other sectors.

Link to full letter (PDF).

RM Partner bowel screening campaign

During October, RM Partners (the Cancer Alliance for north west London and south west London) are delivering a bowel cancer awareness campaign aimed at people aged 40 and above, with a particular focus on people from the most deprived areas and lower socio-economic groups.

In England, over 36,000 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer each year, and it is the 4 most common cancer.
The biggest preventable cause of bowel cancer in the UK is eating too little fibre.

Around 90% of people diagnosed with stage 1 cancer survive for 5 years or more, compared with around 10% of people who are diagnosed at stage 4.

This campaign aims to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of bowel cancer. We are encouraging practices to maximise activity by:

sharing the primary care campaign toolkit which includes key messages with practice staff
displaying and using the available resources via the campaign website
actively promoting awareness during relevant consultations.

Downloadable and printable resources can be ordered via the campaign website. A4 Posters and Wallet cards can be ordered for print in English only and digital posters available in five languages (for download only).

Your support this month will help ensure more people recognise symptoms early and seek timely advice.

NHS Online launches

A new online hospital, NHS Online, is being set up to transform the way patients access specialist care, from 2027. The innovative service will not have a physical site, instead connecting expert clinicians to patients in England. Patients can choose to be referred to NHS Online by their GP and will be able to see specialists, track their prescription and get advice on their condition, without waiting for a face-to-face appointment.

NHS Online will deliver up to 8.5 million appointments in its first three years, focusing initially on specialties with the longest waits. This national service scales up the success of Trusts already delivering care in this way. It will be built in partnership with patients to improve choice, reduce inequity and speed up access and we will work with clinical staff and their union representatives on how best to deliver this new model of care.

Flowchart for maternity services and general practices

Following consultations with London maternity units and the Local Maternity and Neonatal Systems (LMNS), it was identified that offers of immunisation to pregnant patients were inconsistent, leading to variation and disparity in uptake. In response, the London region, in collaboration with partners and stakeholders, has produced a flowchart for maternity services and general practices to ensure all eligible patients receive the immunisations to which they are entitled during pregnancy.

General practice teams are reminded of the importance of recording when an immunisation is offered and, where it has been given, ensuring it is documented in the patient’s notes, handheld record, or e-notes, and that the patient’s maternity unit is informed to prevent incidents of double vaccination. The flowchart pathway is designed to ensure that patients who have not actively declined receive repeated offers throughout their pregnancy, either from the maternity unit or their GP, depending on where they choose to be vaccinated. It also promotes effective communication between general practice and maternity services.

All London maternity units will be working to this pathway. Maternity services and general practices are encouraged to use it with pregnant patients as part of the flu, pertussis, and RSV vaccination programmes. Feedback to help improve the pathway and increase uptake of these important immunisations is welcomed. Please get in touch if you have any queries to the NHS England London Immunisations Team.

Pharmacies dispensing Paxlovid

From 1 October 2025, these pharmacies will be supporting the dispensing Paxlovid in north west London.

If you have any queries, please contact NHS North West London Medicines Optimisation Team.

London Personalised Care Awards 2025

The London Personalised Care Awards 2025 will take place at St Thomas’ Hospital Governor’s Hall on 1 December 2025, from 4.30 to 8pm.

The awards provide an opportunity to celebrate excellence in personalised care, recognising individuals, teams, and organisations who are transforming the way health and care are delivered. By highlighting innovation, leadership, and collaboration, the event will showcase outstanding examples of personalised care in action and inspire continued progress across the system.

This year’s ceremony will bring together senior leaders, frontline professionals, system partners, and people with lived experience for an evening dedicated to celebrating achievements, sharing learning, and driving collective ambition for more person-centred, equitable, and sustainable care.

Further information, including details on how to submit nominations, is available here.

Reducing avoidable ambulance dispatches and conveyances to the emergency department Launching in October - the NW London Integrated Care Coordination (ICC) Hub

The new North West London ICC Hub brings together an MDT of senior clinical decision makers to deliver improved patient outcomes, reduce avoidable conveyance to emergency departments, strengthen coordination and streamline patient touchpoints. It is a single hub operating across north west London co-ordinating an urgent and emergency care response for patients.

The hub provides crews with rapid access to remote; clinical consultations, advice and guidance, and identifying and coordinating the most appropriate service to meet the patient’s need in the community or in-hospital. The ICC Hub supports ambulance clinicians undertaking telephone triage alongside crews attending patients face to face, including those attending patients in care homes.

London Ambulance Service hosts the North West London ICC Hub but it is a system wide initiative, delivered collaboratively with system partners.

What you need to know

The clinicians in the Integrated Care Coordination (ICC) Hub are able to provide clinical support to LAS clinicians, to support decision making on the appropriate place of care for patients. The Hub has enhanced access to patient records and can support referrals to community and in-hospital services.

The Hub set-up ensures that referrals and notifications to Primary Care are appropriate, based on patient need and timeframe.

If one of your patients is seen through the Hub, we will keep you informed about your patient’s care through letter notifications. In addition, the ICC Hub will support the response when you call an ambulance for a patient.

The service launched on 1 October 2025 and will continue to develop over the coming months.

Full details of the service are on the NHS North West London website.

Cervical screening administration service update

The newsletter gives updates on a number of areas, including the numbers of cervical screening invitations and reminders sent, amongside general news.

Wound care survey

We are inviting general practice nurses, health care assistants, and nursing associates across north west London to take part in a survey focused on wound care practice. The survey will take approximately 10 – 15 minutes to complete.

The purpose of this survey is to better understand the day-to-day challenges faced by GPNs, identify where additional support may be needed, and explore opportunities to improve services, training, and resources. Your insights will directly inform the development of more consistent, high-quality wound care pathways across our boroughs.

The findings may also be used to support service improvement, research, and shared learning initiatives, with the aim of strengthening wound care practice across primary care. Please be assured that all responses will be treated in the strictest confidence, and no individuals will be identifiable in any outputs or publications.

We would be very grateful if you could take part in this survey. Your contribution will play an important role in shaping the future of wound care in north west London.

Serious Shortage Protocols for Estradot - extension

Due to ongoing supply issues, the Serious Shortage Protocols SSP079, 080, 081 and 082 (Estradot® patches), which were due to end on Friday 10 October 2025, are being extended.

The new end date for these SSPs is Friday 5 December 2025.

The SSPs are available to view on the NHS Business Service Authority (BSA)’s dedicated SSP web page.

If you have any questions regarding the SSPs please contact the NHS Prescription Service.

Invitation to participate in research

Help us improve training for the NHS App

NHS England want to learn what training, help and guidance you need to confidently support yourself and patients use the NHS App. To do that, NHS England are inviting clinicians and admin staff who help patients with the NHS App to take part in online, 1-to-1 chats for research.

You know what you and your patients find difficult and what makes digital healthcare journeys smoother. By taking part in the research, you can share your insights and experiences directly.

These conversations will help create better resources and support not only for you and your colleagues, but for patients too.

Interviews will be confidential and conducted remotely via Teams at a time that best suits your schedule.

If you would like to take part in research please submit your name on this form. If you have any questions before getting involved, please contact Sarah Wiseman.

NHS England would love to hear from you and truly value your perspective as they work to make the NHS App more useful and accessible for all.

Updated Patient Group Directions

NHS England's London Team has published an updated Patient Group Direction (PGD) on its website. The updated PGD is entitled NHSE UKHSA HPV GBMSM v5.0 and can be found towards the bottom of the page.

Online NHS GP work experience programme – autumn 2025

This year’s campaign theme is ‘Let’s quit smoking together’ and encourages people to take that first step towards a healthier future.

The all NHS and local authority staff Teams webinar on Tuesday 14 October 2025, 12.30 - 1.30pm, is being hosted by the NHS North West London. The session is designed to support staff with conversations that can help signpost and support local residents and patients to quit smoking.

The session will cover:

free local stop smoking services across London
expert one-to-one advice
the free Smoke Free app for London
nicotine replacement therapies and stop smoking medicines
online, text message and face-to-face support.

No need to register, just join us using the Teams link.

Education and training