In August 2019 RCCPH Scotland responded to the Scottish Government Health and Sport Committee Inquiry, The future of primary care in Scotland.
°µÍø½ûÇø Scotland is supportive of this inquiry. Our briefing paper outlines our key priorities for improving primary care for the next generation.
The asked for views on:
- what changes are needed within primary care
- what the barriers are to delivering a sustainable primary care system in both urban and rural areas
- monitoring and evaluation.
Our response
- The inquiry should be sensitive to the UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) in particular Article 12 and 24.
- Integration of care around the needs of children and young people is crucial to improving their health services and outcomes.
- Children and young people are historically under-represented in quality frameworks.
- It is the responsibility of all health professionals to contribute to solutions that will maximise children’s physical, mental health and wellbeing throughout childhood.
Our recommendations
- General Practitioners (GPs) should be aware of the voice of children and young people and use this as a resource to inform and improve their practice.
- Facing the Future: Together for child health standards work to strengthen services and ensure specialist child health expertise and support are available directly into general practice services.
- There is an opportunity for children and young people to be more accurately counted in quality outcomes framework targets.
- All GPs should receive training so that they are skilled to deal with childhood illness.
- A bespoke child health workforce strategy should be developed.
We respond to a wide range of consultations to ensure that the College’s position, and ultimately children’s health, is represented. Members can get involved in current consultations by contacting the Scotland Team: enquiries-scotland@rcpch.ac.uk.