Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many NHS GP practices in (a) England, (b) Coventry & Warwickshire, and (c) Stratford-on-Avon have declined to enter into shared care arrangements for ADHD medication prescribed by private providers in each integrated care board area in the most recent 12-month period for which data is available.

The data requested is not held centrally. The Coventry and Warwickshire Integrated Care Board has also confirmed that it does not hold the relevant data.

The General Medical Council (GMC), which regulates and sets standards for doctors in the United Kingdom, has issued guidance on prescribing and managing medicines, which helps general practitioners (GPs) decide whether to accept shared care responsibilities. In deciding whether to enter into a shared care agreement, a GP will need to consider a number of factors such as whether the proposed activity is within their sphere of competence, and therefore safe and suitable for their patient’s needs. This includes the GP being satisfied that any prescriptions or referrals for treatment are clinically appropriate.

The GMC has made it clear that GPs cannot be compelled to enter into a shared care agreement. GPs may decline such requests on clinical or capacity grounds. If a shared care arrangement cannot be put in place after the treatment has been initiated, the responsibility for continued prescribing falls upon the specialist clinician, which applies to both National Health Service and private medical care.