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Primary care
Primary care is the term for the health services that play a central role in the local community: GPs, pharmacists, dentists and midwives. Primary care providers are usually the first point of contact for a patient. They also follow a patient throughout their care pathway. Primary care trusts (PCTs) in England receive budgets directly from the Department of Health.
Latest updates
Pandemic flu: planning and responding to primary care capacity challenges
Best practice guidance for PCT pandemic flu leads, directors of primary care, directors of commissioning and boards from the Department of Health's Primary Care & Community Services team.
World class commissioning of primary care and community services
A series of supporting guides to help primary care trusts become world class commissioners of primary care and community services. They have been co-produced by NHS East of England, NHS Primary Care Commissioning (NHS PCC), and the Department of Health.
Procurement
Equitable access in primary medical care
Procurement framework to support primary care trusts when delivering local procurements.
Fairness in Primary Care (FPC) procurement: NHS primary medical care and related services
Tackling inequalities in access to primary medical care services in the most under-doctored PCTs in England.
NHS Local Improvement Finance Trust (LIFT)
Developing a new market for investment in primary care and community-based facilities and services.
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Also on this site
Reorganisation of ambulance trusts, SHAs and PCTs
Primary care trusts (PCTs), ambulance trusts and strategic health authorities (SHAs) are being reorganised as part of the Government's drive to create a patient led NHS.
Our health, our care, our say
This White Paper sets out how health and social care services will change in the future.
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