Spotlight on Simone Yule
Tell us a little bit about yourself
I am a GP partner in a rural practice in North Dorset and have been there for 27 years! I am a clinical director and am deputy chair of our newly formed Dorset GP Alliance, developed to ensure primary care has a voice at the table as the ICS develops and beds in. As you can imagine I have seen huge change from when I first started; we still did our own on call back then but in the working day we had time for lunch and conversation and list sizes were manageable, we also didn’t have mobile phones (can you imagine!). Applications for partnerships were abundant and it was a tough gig to get a partnership. I have loved being a partner I enjoy the autonomy and the rapidity in which as small organisations we can innovate and transform. We now have an MDT partnership model with a pharmacist and a nurse practitioner as partners which really enrichens the conversations and decision making.
Just before Covid I engaged with the wave 1 NHS/OPTUM PHM programme, and this was a lightbulb moment as it has inspired me to believe there is a different way of approaching health care and this is what keeps me going. Looking at the whole health and wellbeing of the person, utilising many non-medical interventions and not just offering a paternalistic short-term solution is what gets me out of bed nowadays.
When did you join NHS Confederation and why?
I joined the Confederation because I loved the connection with likeminded people, who have a wealth of experience and have a huge, shared database of learning, are not afraid to stand up for what they believe in and support the basic principles of primary care networks and neighbourhoods.
Since joining however, the benefits have been so much more extensive with access to a wealth of information and up to date summaries that are provided through the APP. I think though the best thing is that through being a member I have the opportunity to express my opinion, and influence which is fed back through the Confederation and can support positive change.
What excites you the most about the direction of the NHS Confederation, and how will you contribute towards it?
The opportunity to have a say, get my voice heard and influence health care decision making at all levels has been one of the best things about being part of the confederation, alongside great peer support from an amazing group of colleagues.
What does it mean to you to be a member of the Primary Care Network Advisory Group?
Being part of the advisory group has given me the opportunity to be involved in workshop discussions, parliamentary enquiries and provide feedback from the frontline on the realities of primary care and primary care networks. It also gives me a national perspective on what’s happening at network level across the country; the challenges and successes of others has made a real impact on how I engage with my local colleagues. An example being how enhanced access is being delivered differently in different areas and the learning that can be taken from such sharing of information.
I am proud to still be a GP doing the best I can for my patient population and colleagues. I am driven to create positive change towards a more proactive and preventative health care model. Which also takes into account that healthcare is only a small factor in a person’s overall wellbeing.
One success that makes me smile is the setting up of a proactive falls and social isolation service focused around a carousel type clinic based in a local community centre, this has a true MDT approach with significant voluntary sector input and has not required any changes in contracting and all the usual red tape processes that stifles transformative innovation.
What is something members of the network, staff and even other Advisory Board members might be surprised to know about you.
When not in work I spend hours mucking out horses and driving my 2 daughters around the country show jumping, I also love a glass of Chardonnay!
