Key News
Gill Schweigert Innovation Award
The Gill Schweigert Innovation Award is an annual event designed to celebrate and acknowledge innovative contributions in nursing across Coventry and Warwickshire.
The awards will recognise nurses and/or nursing teams across Coventry and Warwickshire that have demonstrated exceptional innovation in patient care, quality-driven improvements or projects that have demonstrated evidence of improved patient outcomes.
The prize of £2,500 for first place will come with a framed certificate and trophy, second and third place will receive certificates, trophies and prizes of £1000 and £500 respectively to be invested in patient care or the development of the nurse/nursing team.
The awards are open to all nurses/nursing teams across Coventry and Warwickshire. The Judges are looking for diverse nominations so if organisations are uncertain whether their projects meet the terms of the awards they are encouraged to apply regardless, allowing our Judges to assess them on their merit.
Steps for applying
- Before submitting your nomination form, please read the nomination guide
- Once you have read through the nomination guide, complete the online nomination form by 5pm Friday 27th September
- As part of your nomination, you are required to prepare an A3 poster (details are in the nomination guide) and link to a template is provided here
NHS Staff Survey – General Practice
The Training Hub requires your support to encourage participation in the first GP Staff Survey to reach primary care in Coventry and Warwickshire this October.
Please may we ask that you encourage participation in your practices within Coventry & Warwickshire. If you have any questions about this survey, or accessing it, please contact pinky.sidhu2@nhs.net for more information.
Staff Survey Myth Busting | Staff Survey Poster | General Practice Staff Survey (FutureNHS)
Medical Education Team
Autumn Programme – Medical Education Team
We hope everyone had a nice summer and is ready for the new school term and also our new education programme term.
We want to say goodbye and thank you to Natalie Flood, who is leaving the team after two years as our South Warwickshire Tutor. Emma Marks will be our new South Warwickshire Tutor. We have also appointed a new tutor for Warwickshire North in Laura Doan, who you may know as the First 5 (C&W) Lead for the region.
Our Primary Care in Practice series will start again in October, this series of evening meetings is open to anyone in any role in their first year of working in Primary Care.
PLT dates for 2025 can be found here alongside our Autumn Programme which started last week. Full details can be found here.
Health and Wellbeing
Peer Wellbeing Sessions
We have partnered with MIND to run a series of facilitated Peer Wellbeing Sessions for you.
Peer wellbeing sessions offer a valuable platform for you to connect, share experiences,develop coping mechanisms and build a stronger sense of community, leading to a more positive and supportive environment in our workplace.
These one-hour virtual sessions running on Friday lunchtimes (12.30-1.30) offer a perfect opportunity to recharge.
Each session is divided into two parts:
- The first 30 minutes focus on learning about the session’s topic, exploring helpful tools and resources to manage your well-being, and discovering signposting for additional support
- The following 30 minutes provide a safe space for open discussion with your peers. Share your challenges, what works for you (and what doesn’t!), and brainstorm potential changes you can make to feel better
From September – February 2025 we are focusing on 4 themes – dates for the sessions are below. Once you register you can attend some or all sessions:
- Stress – 6th Sept, 4th Oct, 1st Nov, 6th Dec, 10th Jan and 14th Feb 2025
- Bereavement and Coping with Loss – 13th Sept, 11th Oct, 8th Nov, 13th Dec, 17th Jan and 14th Feb
- Men’s Wellbeing – 20th Sept, 18th Oct, 15th Nov, 24th Jan and 21st Feb
- Anger – 27th Sept, 25th Oct, 22nd Nov, 31st Jan and 28th Feb
If you are interested, click below to register
Leave feeling empowered, connected, and equipped with practical strategies to navigate the everyday!
How to manage yourself through complaints
Open to anyone working in and supporting General Practice!
Have you ever received a complaint at work?
Would you know how to help yourself or colleagues dealing with complaints?
To understand the challenges we face and learn some helpful tools you can use to help you and your colleagues deal with complaints, come along to the upcoming online training session, provided by Shapes Toolkit.
This month, join Dr Rachel Morris, host of the You Are Not a Frog Podcast, former GP and specialist in resilience at work for the upcoming training session in “How to manage yourself through complaints” on Tuesday 17th September at 12.30pm.
You’ll learn:
- The truth about complaints
- How to think differently about failure
- What to do when it happens
Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB)
REACH – Staff Network Event
Staff Survey
Thank you for all your responses to the EDIB staff survey, a report will follow with the results and actions taken to tackle some of the issues raised.
Freedom to Speak Up
Your Freedom To Speak Up Guardian (FTSUG) is here to help you raise concerns including unacceptable health care practices, unprofessional behaviours, bullying, fraud and racism or discrimination.
Most speaking up happens through conversations with supervisors and line managers where challenges are raised and resolved quickly.
We strive for a culture where that is normal, everyday practice and encourage you to explore this option – it may well be the easiest and simplest way of resolving matters
Please contact your Freedom to Speak Up Guardian, Dr Mai Elftise, who can support you to speak up if you feel unable to do so by other routes. You can contact her via pcftsu.guardian@nhs.net.
Training and CPD
Expressions of Interest
Advanced Practitioners
- MSc Advanced Clinical Practice (Funded places)
- MSc Advanced Practitioner top-up (Funded places)
If you would like to submit an expression of interest (EOI) for either of these options, please respond with; name of nominated colleague, their current role, preferred programme and email address.
An application form and conditions of funding will then be sent for completion by the employer and applicant, in preparation for this you will also need to find an appropriately qualified supervisor. Please ensure your nominated colleague meets all of the course criteria before submitting an EOI. We will only accept expressions of interest that are submitted through your Practice/PCN to cw.traininghub@nhs.net. Please see this link for a list of providers and course dates.
Expressions of Interest – Fundamentals of General Practice
We are delighted to confirm that we are able to offer NHSE funded places for 2024/25 on the following course, commencing in January 2025 – Fundamentals of General Practice – MODULE / BSC / ADVDIP / GRADCERT / PGCERT– Birmingham City University
If you would like to submit an expression of interest (EOI) for this course, we ask that they are submitted through your employer.
Non-Clinical Funded Training
In response to the recent Training Needs Analysis, we are pleased to offer the following funded courses for non-clinical colleagues:
- An Introduction to Medical Terminology (2 x 2 hours virtual session) – 8/10th October | 26/28th November
- Chaperone Training (Virtual session) – 12th November | 12th December
The following courses are not yet available to book. Further details will follow once confirmed.
- The New CQC Framework and Preparing for Inspection (2 x 2 half-days virtual session) – Dates TBC
- Bid Writing (Face-to-face session) – Thursday 7th November (Further details to follow)
- Aspiring PMs (Face-to-face session, venue TBC – 2 per PCN limit)
- This is a series of 4 x half day sessions (*plus a virtual celebration event) taking place on the 22nd Oct, 19th Nov, 10th Dec, 21 Jan, 13.30 – 16.30 (*22 April)
- Session 1 – Self-development journey to becoming a successful practice manager
- Session 2 – Navigating the NHS system and the importance of managing relationships
- Session 3 – Understanding operational areas within general practice including HR/Finance/processes
- Session 4 – Planning and preparation for operational leadership challenges and what next
Learning and Development Opportunities
Professional Curiosity Scheme
We are delighted to announce that Round 3 of the Professional Curiosity Scheme has begun and has now expanded to allow many more professionals to benefit from the scheme.
We are also inviting additional roles to apply for shadow placements (including Advanced Nurse Practitioners, Advanced Clinical Practitioners, Paramedics, Physiotherapists, Managers and Pharmacists) in order to further develop collaboration between primary and secondary care.
Shadow placements will be allocated on a first come first served basis taking into account locality and specialty preferences.
Multidisciplinary Team
Clinical Pharmacist Conference
Coventry & Warwickshire Training Hub will be hosting our fourth Clinical Pharmacist Conference on the 14th November. This conference will cover:
- Learning how to interpret spirometry results.
- Hearing from local leaders about respiratory guidelines and interventions.
- Considering how we include brief advice on nutrition and exercise in respiratory reviews
Physician Associate Preceptorships
Newly qualified Physician Associates (PA) can benefit from additional support and guidance during their first year in general practice. To meet this need, NHSE fund educational supervision and educational programmes for the Physician Associate in addition to additional mentorship and supervision within practice.This includes:
- Weekly education course delivered online with PA peers
- Peer case based tutorials as part of the programme
- Monthly session with Education Supervisor (ES) – working though work based assessments
- Supported Job and development plan with ES
- Support to GP Practice from PA Ambassador/ES regarding supervision requirements and expectations
- Mentorship provided by the training hub
- CPD funding for the PA
- Support with e-portfolio and working toward first appraisal
If your practice has employed a PA who is new to general practice or is thinking of employing a newly qualified PA, please contact our Physician Associate Ambassador, Emma Lomas, for further information. Additional information regarding the role is available on the training hub website here.
GP News
Post-CCT Forum
Our Post-CCT forums are open to all newly qualified GPs or those within 2 years post-CCT, working in Coventry and Warwickshire
Register for the Post-CCT forums by clicking on the links below:
Middle(Twenty)5 GP Event – Pensions – a dummies guide!
Join us for this event designed to help you understand the NHS Pension scheme and other general financial planning considerations.
Parental Leave Support Network
The next support circle is on the 24th September, starting at 10am at Kenilworth Methodist church or the 27th September at our new location, Binley Woods Village Hall.
For more resources around parental leave, please visit our webpage.
Locum Buddy Scheme
In recognition of the challenges faced by GP locums in Coventry and Warwickshire, we are excited to introduce the GP Locum Buddy Scheme, an initiative designed to combat feelings of isolation and foster a sense of community among locum doctors.
For more information, please visit our GP Locum webpage by clicking the button below.
General Practice Nursing News
Immunisation Updates
For registered clinicians and HCSWs. We will be using the September PLT dates (12th, 18th, 19th and 25th) to hold our annual immunisation updates. Please use the links below to register:
Your Nursing Career Here
The ‘Your Nursing Career Here’ campaign has officially launched across Coventry and Warwickshire!
This campaign aims to raise the profile of Nursing across our region, including General Practice Nursing.
For more information, or to view the campaign website, please click here.
If you are interested in submitting a case study, have achievements to share or just want more information about this campaign, please email comms.cwth@nhs.net.
Advanced Practice
ACP News and Resources
Please see the following link to see all news and updates nationally from the centre of Advancing Practice:
Please see the following link to clarify the role of Advanced Practitioners:
For more information about digital badges / Eportfolio (supported route) please see:
ANP News and Resources
ANP Peer Support Sessions
ANP peer support / clinical supervision sessions have now started and can be organised as small face-to-face groups locally or via Microsoft teams.
Please click the following link and scroll down to the Nurse Peer Support & Clinical Supervision section to register your interest. Alternatively, you can contact Sue Thomas.
Regulation of advanced nursing and midwifery practitioners
Please see the following NMC link to keep up to date with the ongoing proposals for the future regulation of Advanced nursing and midwifery practitioners.