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We are all aware that the practice workload balance is already, or about to, tip over and with this in mind, it is more important than ever to regularly take stock, check in on our colleagues, proactively plan ahead, take our leave (even if it’s not necessarily when we want to!), and if need be, reach out to others for support. With this in mind, our ever-popular Practice Index Practice Manager panel return to the podcast this week and are joined by GP, executive coach, and resilience expert Dr Rachel Morris to dissect and discuss a situation of which unfortunately many of us are more and more likely to identify with, where a GP partner has been forced to cancel leave due to a mixture of demand and a lack of locum availability. How can we avoid the same fate and how do we start to build resilience whilst most of us are feeling very much like we are close to the same level of vulnerability?

Introduction (0:33)

Sourcing locums from a practice manager’s perspective (1:14)

The situation in Kay’s area in Manchester (1:55)

How have we got to a situation where locums are in such high demand? (2:25)

Facing the reality of having to cancel annual leave (3:26)

Working out what you’re in control of and what you’re not (4:29)

Planning leave, proactive rota management and the role of the practice manager (6:21)

Sustainability in a smaller practice (7:31)

Building resilience in larger practices (8:21)

Acknowledging our vulnerabilities and planning for them (9:07)

Added pressure as a GP partner (10:08)

Protecting the workload (10:37)

Support for the wider workforce (11:09)

Collaboration and co-dependence (12:07)

Working out where you can influence and what you can change (13:58)

Why asking for help is not a sign of weakness (15:08)

Buddy practices and increased reliance on others (16:15)

Managing the dearth of GPs and developing practice skill mix (17:26)

Effective communications (18:50)

An analogy of managing patient demand (19:40)

Making the most of the ARRS funding (20:50)

Time management and maximising impact (21:50)

Staff wellbeing is paramount (23:08)

Final thoughts from Robyn and Kay (23:33)

Rachel’s incredibly popular ‘You are not a frog’ podcast can be found here

For all enquiries about the Practice Index / Ockham podcast, please contact James Dillon here or Ben Gowland here