PLT was introduced by Surrey Heartlands CCG and the Surrey Training Hub to recognise the need for general practices in primary care to have time to access and carry out essential training, to support the great work that they do. The practices close for the afternoon, with systems in place to deal with anything that arises during the afternoon of closure. It is not mandatory, and in the past some practices have remained open. However, we try to ensure maximum participation from the entire primary care workforce at these training events, and to encourage a collaborative approach.
Why have Protected Learning Time?
- Improving patient care by providing practices, PCNs and ICPs with dedicated learning time away from busy surgeries and other day-to-day primary care work in all four ICPs
- Providing opportunities for healthcare professionals to learn about new clinical developments, updates to national guidance, and best practice, whilst also sharing their own experience and knowledge with their peers both virtually and face to face
- Provision of non-clinical staff training to ensure they are equipped with the right skills and toolkits to manage the environment in which they work
- Improving the overall retention, resilience and morale of the Surrey Heartlands primary care workforce by training them in the skills to plan, manage and implement changes confidently and with agility.
The CCG ensures that a robust application process is in place, with easy to follow guidance, and an adequate service contingency is in place to protect local systems from any impact the Practice closures may cause. Through contracting additional resource from Practice Plus you can ensure all calls to primary care are triaged and that domiciliary visits can be undertaken during core hours. In addition, each practice will need to identifiy a Duty DR who will be available in the unlikely event that Practice Plus are unable to manage demand. Practices are encouraged to promote the date of their closures well in advance to raise patient awareness.
The PLT programme will involve the following closures on an annual basis and is for the benefit of both the clinical and non-clinical workforce. The PCN PLT’s are divided into PCN clusters which greatly reduces the number of closures taking place at the same time throughout the year. Below is how the PLT sessions are programmed throughout the year:
2 x Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) level (13:00-18.30)
2 x Primary Care Network (PCN) cluster level (13:00– 18.30)
2 x Individual practice level (13:00–18.30)
The SHCCG, GP Tutors, PCN Educators and the Surrey Training Hub team work closely together to provide educational content for these events. Throughout the year, themes, topics, trends and feedback after each event is considered when it comes to the designing of the training programme for each PCN and ICP PLT.