Associate Psychological Practitioners (APPs) in primary care: modelling the impact.

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Workforce Planning
• Mental Healthcare Delivery

Background:

• The Associate Psychological Practitioner (APP) is a new role designed to expand the mental health workforce in England.
• Rising demand for mental health services necessitates innovative workforce solutions.
• The impact of the APP role on NHS workforce capacity requires quantitative analysis.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model the impact of the APP role on primary care mental health capacity.
• To assess the effect of APPs on General Practitioner (GP) capacity within primary care settings.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a modelling tool developed by the NHS Workforce Repository and Planning Tool (WRaPT) team.
• Scenario modelling was applied to 41 Primary Care Networks (PCNs) in Lancashire and South Cumbria.
• Key assumptions included defining patient populations, workforce scope, APP activities, and future state scenarios.

Main Results:

• One APP per PCN could provide 53,000 brief intervention appointments (45 min each) annually.
• APPs could facilitate 384 group and well-being sessions per year (48 people benefiting).
• Each APP could free up at least 1,665 GP appointments annually, offering potential cost savings.

Conclusions:

• The APP role has the potential to significantly enhance mental health care capacity in primary care.
• Modelling provides evidence for informed decision-making regarding APP training and wider workforce planning.
• Integrating APPs can optimize resource allocation and improve the efficiency of primary care services.