
NHS England Podcast
At NHS England our aim is to support the NHS and help improve care for patients. Our podcast will be providing commentary and information about NHS health care services, policy and success stories.
Latest episodes

Apr 16, 2025 • 40min
NHS community pharmacy services – what are the benefits for practices and patients and how could they evolve?
Ruth Buchan, Mark Burden, and Claire Smeaton dive into the transformative role of community pharmacies in patient care. They discuss the innovative 'Pharmacy First' initiative, which allows patients to consult pharmacies for minor illnesses, reducing pressures on general practice. The panel emphasizes collaboration between pharmacies and GPs, the benefits of digital referrals, and the expanding clinical skills of pharmacists. They also explore creative initiatives, like Captain Blood Pressure, aimed at enhancing health awareness and community engagement.

Apr 4, 2025 • 39min
Addressing Health Inequalities: Do digital technologies make the difference?
NHS colleagues across the region are working hard to make it easier for people to access the care they need. In this episode of the Transforming Primary Care podcast series, we explore the role of digital technology in addressing health inequalities and improving health outcomes for underserved groups and communities A panel of health and care professionals join Rachel Johns deputy regional director of public health for NHS England and the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities for North East and Yorkshire to discuss the initiatives within primary care which aim to ensure everyone is able to access NHS services. This includes how colleagues are working with primary care teams to successfully navigate challenges such as higher levels of deprivation and lower literacy levels. For more information on NHS England’s work on addressing health inequalities visit
https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/equality/equality-hub/national-healthcare-inequalities-improvement-programme/ For more information on the Transforming Primary Care podcast visit: https://www.england.nhs.uk/north-east-yorkshire/our-work/transforming-primary-care-podcast/
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/podcast-addressing-health-inequalities-do-digital-technologies-make-the-difference/
Contact us: england.ney.pctransformation@nhs.net

Mar 24, 2025 • 2min
Spring COVID-19 invitation for people aged 75 and over
An audio version of the spring COVID-19 invitation for people aged 75 and over
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/spring-covid-19-invitation-for-people-aged-75-and-over/
Contact us: england.contactus@nhs.net

Mar 24, 2025 • 3min
Spring COVID-19 invitation for people with a weakened immune system
This is an audio version of the Spring COVID-19 invitation for people with a weakened immune system
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/spring-covid-19-invitation-for-people-with-a-weakened-immune-system/
Contact us: england.contactus@nhs.net

Mar 13, 2025 • 42min
Creating the multi-disciplinary team
Making full use of a multi-professional primary care team, helping GPs and practice staff to optimise use of their time to where it’s needed most, is a key principle of Modern General Practice. A panel of GPs and other health and care professionals join Dr Simon Stockill to discuss how the ability to better allocate patients to the right health professional or service supports effective use of staff time and skills, including those employed through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS).
In this episode, recorded in December 2024, we also explore how creating a multi-disciplinary team can support improved ability and capacity to provide continuity of care for those that benefit most, including vulnerable patients and those with long-term health conditions. For more information about Modern General Practice visit https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp/national-general-practice-improvement-programme/modern-general-practice-model/
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/transforming-primary-care-creating-the-multidisciplinary-team/
Contact us: england.ney.pctransformation@nhs.net

Feb 10, 2025 • 9min
Your guide to NHS bowel cancer screening - audio file
An audio version of the bowel cancer screening leaflet sent with invitations to eligible people.
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/bowel-cancer-screening-benefits-and-risks/audio-transcript-your-guide-to-nhs-bowel-screening-podcast
Contact us: england.vaccinations-screening-communications@nhs.net

Jan 29, 2025 • 2min
NHS Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination audio invitation (75-79 years)
This podcast provides information on the NHS respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) offer for eligible people aged 75 to 79 years, including those who have recently turned 80.
Read more at www.nhs.uk/rsv-vaccine
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-respiratory-syncytial-virus-rsv-vaccination/

Jan 27, 2025 • 18min
Preventing Cervical Cancer
In this podcast, Dr Harrison Carter, a medical doctor and Director of Screening for NHS England, hears from Anne, Beth, Sophie, Sian, about their own cervical screening journeys. Alongside Doctors Behl, Imtiaz-Umer, Ruwende, Owolabi, Patel, Hussain and Rukeya Miah, addresses the information gaps that many people have around cervical screening, human papilloma virus (or HPV) and the role of HPV vaccination. Further information about Cervical screening , HPV vaccination and Cervical cancer is available online at nhs.uk
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/transcript-preventing-cervical-cancer-podcast/
Contact us: england.vaccinations-screening-communications@nhs.net

Dec 19, 2024 • 39min
What Does Modern General Practice Mean?
What does Modern general practice mean?
There’s been a huge amount of work done in primary care to improve processes and systems for staff and access to patients. In the past year to 18 months that has been referred to as ‘Modern General Practice.'
In this final episode of our first Transforming Primary Care podcast series GP practice team colleagues discuss how new ways of working benefit both practices and patients and explore the challenges that are faced when making changes to the way we do things.
Topics covered include the assessment of patients using modern triage techniques, equality of access for patients and the effective use of the multi-disciplinary team within general practice.
For more information about modern general practice visit: https://www.england.nhs.uk/gp/national-general-practice-improvement-programme/modern-general-practice-model/
For examples of modern general practice in the North East and Yorkshire region visit: https://www.england.nhs.uk/north-east-yorkshire/our-work/delivering-the-primary-care-access-plan-best-practice-examples/
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/what-does-modern-general-practice-mean/
Contact us:england.ney.pctransformation@nhs.net

Nov 27, 2024 • 32min
Getting the most out of the NHS App
Owned and run by the NHS in England, the NHS App provides a simple and secure way for people to access a range of NHS services on their smartphone or tablet. It can also be accessed via the NHS website.
The NHS App is home to a range of features that enable patients to access services from the comfort of their homes – from viewing their GP health record to nominating their preferred pharmacy.
Patients in many parts of the country are now able to view and manage their hospital appointments on the App, and many GP practices are now sending NHS App notifications to patients with appointment reminders and other messages relating to their care.
In this episode we’ll discuss how NHS App use has increased across the region including specific work by our NHS App Ambassadors in North East and Yorkshire and the recent partnership work with Libraries UK. We'll also discuss the next steps for this 'front door' to NHS services, which is currently used by over 35 million users nationally.
For more information on how best to promote the NHS App in your area visit: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/nhs-app
You can also view the roadmap which gives the details of new features in development - https://digital.nhs.uk/services/nhs-app/roadmap
A transcript of this episode is available on our website - https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/transcript-getting-the-most-out-of-the-nhs-app-podcast/
Contact us: england.ney.pctransformation@nhs.net
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