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From 1st October 2020 PCNs are required to deliver the Framework for Enhanced Health in Care Homes (EHCH). The specification requires all CQC registered care homes to be aligned to a PCN and each care home have a named clinical lead. The specification requires GPs to delivery weekly ward rounds and MDTs to their aligned care homes with the support from community services.

Download the Easy Read Leaflet for people living in care homes about the changes to their care.

Preceding the PCN EHCH Specification, a pilot was undertaken in Cheltenham to improve patient care in care homes. Following this pilot a “care home toolkit” has been developed highlighting some key tools and interventions identifying gold standard recommendations by the pilot group. The toolkit should be read in the context of the EHCH specification.

Download the Toolkit.

Summaries of the education offers available to care homes and GP Care Home leads have been developed to support training and development:

The West of England AHSN is running a programme of initiatives to support care homes, including offering free virtual training to care staff on recognising the soft signs of deterioration through tools including RESTORE2, taking and recording NEWS2 observations, and employing SBARD for the handover of information to services like GPs and emergency.

Watch a 4 min video for GPs which outlines the benefits of care staff being trained in these tools.