General practice access

The General Practice Access Programme helps practice teams understand and improve how patients access care. It includes five elearning chapters that guide teams through the key steps needed to make access safer, simpler and more efficient for patients and staff.

Intended audience

This programme is for people involved in designing, running or improving access systems in general practice, including:

• Practice managers
• Staff who lead on patient access
• GP partners
• Members of the wider general practice team
• PCN staff
• Patient groups and representatives
• Service planners, commissioners and researchers
• People who are new to general practice

Key areas covered

The five chapters explore:

• How to take a whole-system approach to improving access
• Understanding demand and activity in general practice
• Working with patients to co-design better access
• Supporting and strengthening the general practice team
• Making change happen using proven improvement methods
• Examples of good practice from across England
• How to use existing tools, guidance and support offers

Learning objectives

By the end of this programme, learners will be able to:

• Explain the main factors affecting access in general practice
• Understand how to assess and interpret patient demand
• Work with patients to understand their needs and improve access fairly
• Use team-based approaches to design and test improvements
• Apply practical steps to plan, deliver and review access changes
• Identify further support, resources and examples of good practice