GP dementia payment scheme will end next year, NHS confirms
BMJ 2014; 349 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.g7339 (Published 28 November 2014) Cite this as: BMJ 2014;349:g7339All rapid responses
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I think most doctors would welcome the news that "pay per diagnosis" scheme is to be scrapped in general practice.
Should we now also think about some sort of re-structuring of scheme running in hospitals?
At the moment hospitals are being paid for achieving 90% CQUIN target for assessment of "patients at risk of delirium and dementia". Namely for assessment of all over 75s and those with high CAM+ (Confusion Assessment Measure) score on admission.
In practice, hospitals are adding dementia screening questions to discharge summary software that junior doctors complete when patient is ready for discharge. Software does not allow you to move forward unless dementia screening is complete and therefore questions need to be ticked. In this way hospitals work towards their CQUIN target.
I have performed a survey among 20 junior and general medical doctors in one of the trusts. Over 60% of doctors felt that it was not useful to have dementia screening questions on electronic discharge summaries and they did not feel they should be the ones completing it. Over 70% of doctors did not have the necessary information at hand, ie: MOCA- Montreal Cognitive Assessment tool and did not return to complete it. Comments included criticism for such assessments being inappropriate in the hospital, and suggested they should ideally take place in patiens's familiar enviroment.
Comments also suggested that there should be designated staff-specialist nurses perhaps, who should be completing the assessment much earlier than on the day of discharge. Such staff would be able to liaise with the Old-Age psychiatrists and arrange appropriate follow up.
After all we all want better diagnosis and access to treatment for those mostly vulnerable. We need to remember though that over-labelling someone with memory problems can lead to distrust and unnecessary anxiety and should be avoided. Perhaps dementia CQUIN target is not all bad. However, it needs to be perused in an appropriate way and it seems as we are just aiming to provide the goverment with the new figure on how well we are dealin with dementia issue.
Patients and hospitals would benefit more from direct investment into frontline, skilled, designated staff who would improve care and truly identify those who need attention and support.
Competing interests: No competing interests
Re: GP dementia payment scheme will end next year, NHS confirms
Why, in the name of all that is sacred, does the Medical profession continue to accept, even promote, howsoever tacitly, the philosophy of accountancy uber alles?
Remove fee for item of service for everything. Give the GPs a respectable per capita payment. Abolish " incentives".
Merry Christmas.
Competing interests: Old man