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Local Spotlight: North Mersey
North Mersey have localised over 80 care maps, carefully designed to tackle clinical or commissioning issues in their area as part of their QIPP scheme. The North Mersey view covers all primary and secondary care Trusts within Liverpool, Sefton and Knowsley, and each area has its own view on the Map.
Dave Lawless, Project Manager for Map of Medicine in North Mersey, says: ‘In North Mersey we market Map of Medicine as the Yellow Pages for clinicians. All localised pathways contain specific information to add weight to the pathways, such as patient information leaflets and local clinic contact details. Pathways are accessed on all GPs' PCs across the region and benefits are monitored by accessing Map of Medicine usage and referral rates.'
One of the hot topics for the region is dyspepsia referrals and so the team at North Mersey have created a local Dyspepsia care pathway which has been designed to reduce referrals into secondary care by providing a H.Pylori breath test to patients before referring to secondary care.
In North Mersey, employing this tactic can mean a vast reduction in referral figures, and with that comes a reduction in cost, since a GP performing a breath test will cost £40 compared with a first gastroenterology outpatient appointment (£268). North Mersey have at least 10 more pathways in the pipeline, so watch this space.
If you’re feeling inspired by the work that North Mersey has done and would like to know more then please contact your local Map consultant, or log on to the Map and switch to the North Mersey view to check out their local pathways.