About Us
Our Mission
Worcestershire Local Medical Committee (LMC) is dedicated to supporting and representing General Practitioners and their teams across Worcestershire. We work closely with local practices, providing guidance, advocacy, and support to ensure the highest standards of patient care are maintained throughout the region.
What are LMC's?
LMCs are the bodies recognised by successive NHS Acts of Parliament as the professional organisations representing GPs and GP practices as a whole.
They have existed since the passing of the Local Insurance Act in 1911 when they worked in partnership with the Local Insurance Committees to ensure that the services of “Panel GPs” were available to lower paid workers. Over the years LMCs have provided impressive continuity and expanded their role in the face of many changes in NHS structure.
The 1999 NHS Act extended the LMC role to include representation of all GPs whatever their contractual status. This includes GMS GPs, PMS GPs, Sessional GPs and GP registrars.
The function of LMCs is to represent the interests of GPs and practices with the objective of optimising the terms & conditions, working environment and stability of all GPs both individually and at practice level. The LMC achieves this via the following broad functions:
Representing the views of GPs and practices to all relevant parties through our elected representatives and Secretariat team.
Providing expertise and advice to support GPs and practices such as contractual issues, regulations, estates, workload, guidance etc.
Pastorally supporting GPs in difficulty through ill health, performance issues and other problems.
Creating and circulating useful guidance to GPs and practices on various issues relating to GP activity.
Liaising and negotiating with other system partners within the NHS to minimise adverse effects on General Practice and improve interfaces.
We canvass the views of GPs and represent them to a variety of different organisations such as Worcestershire ICS, CD Forum, Local Authorities, NHS England, NHS Trusts, CQC, West Mercia police, NHS 111, the Coroners, local and national media, RCGP, MPs.
Representing the views of local GPs to national leaders, via the General Practitioners Committee (GPC) of the BMA and also through the National Conference of LMCs.
How are we funded?
All LMCS are funded by a statutory levy which is collected from Practices and is based on the number of patients registered at that Practice. The amount is set by the Committee and reviewed annually. It funds the office and Officers of the LMC, as well as any individual Committees and attendance of members at meetings.
Worcestershire LMC structure
The Committee at the heart of Worcestershire LMC consists of 16 GP’s elected across our 6 constituencies. Elections take place every 4 years according to the rules of our Constitution. Any GP contributing to the LMC levy who is on the performers list on the 1st January in an election year can be nominated in the election.
In addition to elected members the Constitution allows the Committee to Co-opt additional members who have a particular area of expertise.
The Committee meets monthly.
Any vacancies that arise mid-term are advertised in the LMC Newsletter.
Any GP interested in being co-opted to a vacancy or wishing to be involved with the LMC in some capacity can register their interest with Tracey Summers.
Meetings
Representation at External meetings:
The LMC has always been invited to attend a number of meetings as a key stakeholder in Worcestershire and this has increased recently with the appointment of the new Worcestershire LMC Limited Board.
A member of the Board is in attendance at a number of meetings on a regular basis(these are detailed in our members area)
This allows the LMC to be at the heart of the decision-making process and provides the opportunity to influence and collaborate ensuring commissioning decisions are co-produced with the maximum benefit to patients and the health and social care system, ensuring an independent voice of General Practice is represented.
On average the LMC Committee Team collectively has a presence at 10 meetings per week, representing GPs and their practices on a number of different groups across Worcestershire, England and Nationally.