Primary Care Network

Welcome to the ACP-UK’s Primary Care Network. New developments have been taking place in this field, with some current funding opportunities from NHS England. ACP-UK believes that given the enormity of the challenges in primary care across the UK, clinical psychology has a lot to offer to GPs, primary care staff and patients, addressing health and mental health together.

We had an excellent start for the new network at our inaugural meeting in November 2023, with psychologists from around the country working either directly or indirectly with primary care. There was wide variation in approach and focus for each psychologist, including those working on the gap between primary and secondary care, functional neurological disorders, support for GPs to help manage personality disorder, frequent attendance and persistent physical complaints, organisational support for practices and the GP psychologist approach.

Lucy Marks, Suzanne Heywood-Everett and Rebecca Magill described how this network developed out of earlier work done to create a report on mapping good practice entitled ‘Clinical Psychology in Primary Care, how can we afford to be without it’, and also a report produced by the Centre for Mental Health on Clinical Psychology in Primary Care.

The network aims to provide an opportunity for the following:

·      Learning about what has worked in primary care
·      Finding out about best practice
·      Ideas, inspiration and new connections
·      Developing a clear model
·      Developing ways of working in primary care and the community
·      Developing the field nationally

We are now preparing for our launch webinar, which we hope will inspire psychologists to want to work in primary care, through providing great examples of what can be done. We plan to show a short film of Dr Rebecca Magill and her team talking about the satisfaction they get working using the GP Psychologist model in Cornwall, and how it has changed their professional lives. Dr Suzanne Heywood-Everett will also be presenting her latest work focusing on their collaborative approach with patients with persistent physical symptoms, alongside her GP colleagues and the difference this makes to the primary care team.

If you would like to join this network or feel you have the skills and interest to join the advisory group do get in touch with Naomi Johnson