On Wednesday 3 August, PICS was shortlisted in East Midlands Chamber of Commerce’s annual Business Awards during the ‘President’s Summer Celebration’ event, which took place at Derby’s Museum of Making. PICS is a finalist in the category of ‘Outstanding Growth’, recognising exceptional levels of growth over the past 12 months, alongside a strong plan for sustainable performance.
Significant organisational growth occurred during the pandemic in order to support the NHS’s priority to expand personalised care in the community, where patients are seen at the right time, by the right person and in the right place for them.
Working with 11 Primary Care Networks (PCNs) within Nottinghamshire, PICS employed and deployed over 115 clinical professionals including Clinical Pharmacists, Social Prescribers, First Contact Physiotherapists, Paramedics, Care Coordinators, Occupational Therapists and trainee Nurse Associates. Another 65 positions have been recruited to since then, with more in the pipeline.
A conservative estimate of the impact of the roles is that PICS supported GPs with added capacity of an estimated 200,000 appointments to see patients in 2021.
To enable the PCNs to thrive, PICS provided additional infrastructure that ensures service quality, patient safety and value-for-money.
The winners of the Awards will be announced In November 2022.
Alison Rounce, PICS Managing Director said:
“Being a finalist in the East Midlands Chamber’s Outstanding Growth category is fantastic recognition for everyone who has worked so hard to realign our resources and achieve fast-paced, sustainable growth in support of Nottinghamshire’s healthcare system.
“Run and owned by local GPs, PICS made a strategic decision in 2019 to invest heavily in primary care so that funding from NHS England could reach patients as quickly as possible. By employing hundreds of new staff in general practice and supporting the business management of eleven primary care networks, PICS took the risk away from individual general practices and freed up practitioners so that they could focus on patients.
“Thank you to every member of staff who has contributed to GPs increasing their capacity by at least 200,000 appointments. This is a remarkable achievement during unprecedented times, and is testament to how hard people work behind the scenes for patients, including PCN business managers, finance staff and colleagues in human resources and practices.
“Together, we have proven that GPs are best placed to design and deliver quality services that provide safe, good value and sustainable care. I am very proud of our trusted partner status with GPs and the wider NHS, and the caring culture at PICS that puts patients first.”
