PCT: Joining up minor illness management for your population

In any PCT area there will be a range of minor illness management and unscheduled care services provided from:

• Walk-in Centres and Minor Injuries Units
• General Practice through nurse-led minor illness services
• Pharmacy-led services on the high street

Often there is no single strategy to join up these strands to ensure a consistent approach so patients may not understand or be aware of the most appropriate choice of provider in their area.

Our pharmacy-led minor illness management case studies demonstrate how one PCT has worked successfully to integrate out-of-hours and pharmacy-led minor illness services. This integrated approach in Central and Eastern Cheshire PCT has resulted in consultations through pharmacy during the out-of-hours period that is double the rate in other pharmacy-led minor illness management service.

The experience of GPs that have established nurse-led minor illness services in their practices has underlined the importance of simple, accessible and repeated information to patients in order to embed alternatives to the GP in their repertoire of healthcare services. Our review of WIC information shows that there is wide variation in the information available to the public about the range of conditions covered, and that this information is often inconsistent and difficult to understand. This is one simple change that PCTs could make to better integrate minor illness services for their population.

Our guides and case studies provide a starting point for PCTs interested in integrating approaches to minor illness management. We are keen to hear from PCTs that have taken a "joined up" approach.