RCGP Scotland

Officers

• Dr Chris Provan, Chair
• Dr Chris Williams, Vice Chair

Faculty Representatives

North East Scotland Scottish Council Reps - Dr Margaret Denison
North East Scotland UK Council Rep - Dr Margaret Denison
 
South East Scotland Scottish Council Reps -  Dr Babar Akbar
South East Scotland UK Council Rep - Dr Sian Tucker
 
West Scotland Scottish Council Reps - Dr Gorkem Hamali and Dr Oyekunle Solomon Oke
West Scotland UK Council Rep - Dr Mary Anne Burrow
 
East Scotland Scottish Council Reps - Dr Scott Jamieson and Dr Amy Knighton
East Scotland UK Council Rep - Dr Munro Stewart
 
North Scotland Scottish Council Reps - Dr David Stephens 
North Scotland UK Council Rep - Dr Chris Williams

Ballot Members

2022-2025 - Dr Stuart Blake

2022-2025 - Dr Mary Anne Burrow

2023-2026 - Carey Lunan

2023-2026 - Kerri Neylon

2024-2027 - Dr Sigi Joseph

2024-2027 - Dr Stuart Shand

Additional Members

Undergraduate Medical Education - Dr Kevin McConville

Climate & Sustainability - Dr James Morton

Ex Officio Members

Chair, GP registrar and First5 Committee - Dr Issmael Fergague

Chair, RCGP Council - Professor Kamila Hawthorne

President, RCGP Council - Dr Richard Vautrey

Observers

Academic - Professor Lindsey Pope

NHS Education for Scotland - Dr Nitin Gambhir

Chair, RCGP Scottish Patient Forum - Professor Sonia Cottom

Individual Expertise - Professor Sir Lewis Ritchie

Deputy Chair, RCGP Scotland GP registrar and First5 Committee - Dr Akram Hussain

Chair, Scottish GP Committee - Dr Iain Morrison

Contact us

If you have any queries about RCGP Scottish Council, you can direct these to ScottishC@rcgp.org.uk

The RCGP Scotland GP registrar and First5 Committee is as follows:

• Chair: Dr Issmael Fergague
• Deputy Chair: Dr Akram Hussain
• North East GP registrar Representative: Dr Sophie Gerring
• North East First5 Representative: Dr Stewart Shand
• South East GP registrar Representative: Dr Jane McManus
• South East First5 Representative: Dr Katherina Tober / Dr Cameron Kennedy
• West GP registrar Representative: Dr Akram Hussain / Dr Oyekunle Solomon Oke / Dr Precious Osadolor
• West First5 Representative: Dr Fiona Stark / Dr Diya Mathew
• East GP registrar Representative: Dr Issy Penner / Dr Katie Jobling
• East First5 Representative: Dr Golnessa Masson / Dr Paula Roberts / Dr Lloyd Hughes
• North GP registrar Representative: Vacancy
• North First5 Representative: Vacancy

A poorly functioning interface can have an adverse impact on the efficiency of the healthcare system. Through various methods of research a number of factors adversely impacting on interface working were identified. These include:

• The absence of formal processes or support to gather data (for example, from Significant Event Analyses) to encourage two-way learning and information sharing, which could potentially bring about wider system improvements
• The loss of inter-professional relationships resulting in less functional communication between primary-secondary care
• The presence of incompatible and unreliable IT systems adversely impacting the ability to share clinical data efficiently and safely

In early 2018, RCGP Scotland gained support and funding through the Scottish Government Improving General Practice Sustainability Advisory Group for a three-year project to support the establishment or development of primary-secondary care Interface Groups in each Health Board area.

In recognition that different Health Boards and HSCPs vary in their approach, their culture, their geography and their experience of interface, a flexible and tailored approach, rather that a 'one size fits all' will be taken. It is intended that these groups, in collaboration with key others in their local areas, will offer a clinician-led, solution-focused approach to addressing interface issues relevant to them.

In addition, improving interface working is an important facet of the new GMS contract, and College input in the Improving General Practice Sustainability Advisory Group has been instrumental in promoting this view. The contract document states:

"Improving interface working: to ensure effective working between primary and secondary care, we will continue to implement the recommendations of the Improving General Practice Sustainability Advisory Group as set out in its report on November 2016.

"Within the recommendations there are a number of broad themes including effective primary and secondary care interface working. Interface working will be better achieved through well-functioning primary and secondary care interface groups. These groups will support NHS Boards and HSCPs to reduce GP workload and provide a better patient experience by removing the need for GP involvement when it is not clinically necessary."

BMA / RCGP Scotland Joint Principles Statement "Whole System Working - The Interface in Scotland"

In November 2020, the BMA and RCGP Scotland produced a joint principles statement (PDF file, 580 KB) to set out the key principles required to achieve effective whole systems working.

To support Interface Groups or other groups with an interface remit, we have developed a pack of support materials that will be amended and added to over the time of the project. Currently the support pack includes:

• Template business case to request resource for an interface group (Word doc, 27 KB)
• Draft remit and membership (Word doc, 27 KB)
• Examples of things other boards/groups have done and suggested activities, guidance and signposting (Word doc, 17.6 KB)
• Website/letter content to raise awareness of interface group (Word doc, 41 KB)
• Work shadowing materials:
  • template invitation (Word doc, 15.9 KB)
  • request form (Word doc, 13.2 KB)
  • feedback form (Word doc, 15.4 KB)
  • SOAR template (Word doc, 374 KB)

These documents are to provide a basic generic outline and can be taken and amended by Interface Groups to make them relevant in their local area. If there are other materials that you would find useful, please email scotland.interface@rcgp.org.uk and we will do our best to support this.

We are very keen to develop a virtual support network of Interface Group Leads across Scotland to encourage the effective sharing of learning. We have produced newsletters giving an update on how the project is progressing and useful links to useful resources and tried to follow up with Webinars, but are currently looking at new ways of sharing learning more efficiently.  

• Improving together: a national framework for Quality and GP Clusters
• The modern outpatient: a collaborative approach 2017 - 2020
• Patient's perspectives of Primary Secondary Care interface (Sampson, R) (PDF file, 729 KB)
• Qualitative study of relationships between GPs and Hospital Consultants (Sampson, R) (PDF file, 509 KB)
• Educational intervention to improve the interface (Sampson, R)
• View the RCGP Scotland effective interface module (PDF file, 835 KB)

This page will be updated as the project develops, so please keep visiting and let us know if there is anything you would find useful to be included. Email scotland.interface@rcgp.org.uk.