Professional resilience of mid-career GPs

GPs' professional resilience is influenced by multiple factors, and a study of mid-career GPs found that reducing clinical hours can improve resilience at work. The GP workforce is in crisis with GP numbers declining and work pressures increasing. This research demonstrates that reducing clinical hours is an effective way for GPs to feel resilient enough to maintain career longevity. If this is not taken into consideration politically, or within workforce planning, the crisis in GP numbers is likely to continue to worsen and, ultimately, the population’s access to primary care will further suffer.

Physical activity for patients with multimorbidity

Group educational sessions to improve physical activity showed an unexpected result in this randomised controlled trial of patients with multimorbidity. It found a slight decrease in activity in the intervention group. This reduction in physical activity was statistically significant but possibly not clinically. The authors suggest that when devising strategies for increasing physical activity levels in those with multimorbidity, efforts should be made to stratify patients by baseline physical activity level and target those at greatest need of physical activity intervention. This study highlights some of the challenges of conducting physical activity research.

Long COVID coding: data from OpenSAFELY

Recording of long COVID in primary care is low and variable between practices, according to an analysis of 58 million patient records. This study of OpenSAFELY data found wide variation in the early use of these codes, by practice, geographic region, and practice electronic health record software. Long COVID coding was significantly higher among practices using EMIS compared with those using TPP. Increased awareness of diagnostic codes for long COVID is needed to facilitate research and planning of services. View an update on Long COVID Coding data at reports.opensafely.org.