Current status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 12 June 2024
To ask the Scottish Government whether the 2018 GP contract, which moved vaccination services from the remit of GPs to NHS boards, means that emergency vaccinations for tetanus and other conditions can no longer be provided in GP surgeries.
The 2018 GP contract does not mean that emergency vaccinations for tetanus and other conditions can no longer be provided in GP surgeries.
In 2017, as part of the commitment to reduce GP workload and refocus their role onto more complex care, the Scottish Government and the BMA’s Scottish GP Committee agreed vaccinations would progressively move away from a model based on GP delivery to one based on NHS Board delivery through dedicated teams. NHS Boards can make arrangements for those teams to deliver vaccines on the premises of GP surgeries (many of which are in buildings owned by NHS Boards) if this meets local needs.
In rare circumstances it may be appropriate for GP practices, such as small rural and island practices, to continue delivering these services routinely.