Template letter: trust request for non-contractual task(s)

  • Template letters

This letter explains that due to extreme workload pressures and demand, practices have no capacity for non-contractual tasks which sit outside of the ‘core’ GP contract.

This resource forms part of our safe working pack.

It goes on to explain that as per the standard hospital contract, these activities should be provided by secondary care. Please use this letter to communicate with secondary care regarding inappropriate requests to:

  1. Prescribe medication (including shared care prescribing, off formulary medications, inappropriate requests)
  2. Follow up results
  3. Issue MED3 Certificate
  4. Arrange investigations (including specialist investigations not available to GPs)
  5. Undertake Monitoring/ post-operative checks
  6. Refer Patient Back

We recommend that a copy of this letter is sent to the patient, so they will be aware that their specialist team will be contacting them directly to manage this request.

Note: if you choose to share a copy of this letter with Londonwide LMCs please remove any patient identifiable information before sending it to us. Sharing patient identifiable information with the LMC is a breach of data protection legislation.

Our thanks to Cambridgeshire LMC and Dr Katie Bramall-Stainer, their CEO, for collaborating with other LMCs to give more GPs access to this document.