General Practice OPEL Reports
INTRODUCTION:
As you may be aware, between 2022 and April 2025, Wessex Local Medical Committees was part of a national project, GPAS (General Practice Alert State) that converted practice data into an equivalent OPEL assessment. From 1st April 2025, we started “Wessex LMCs General Practice OPEL report.”
WHAT IS OPEL
The OPEL framework is used extensively elsewhere in the health system including acute trusts, community health services, mental health services, and NHS 111 and is a way of reporting and managing operational pressures in a standardised way.
WHAT HAS CHANGED?
We have simplified our reporting process and have altered our reports to make them clearer and easier to interpret. Our OPEL scores in General Practice align with those in secondary care.
This is helping develop closer partnership working and increase awareness of operational pressures affecting General Practice.
WHAT DO PRACTICES NEED TO DO?
You will need to nominate an individual to complete our weekly survey which should take 30 – 60 seconds every week. This may be the practice or business manager, a GP or someone else able to comment on the questions below:
- What PCN do you belong to. (This is used solely to assign your OPEL rating to the appropriate Sub-Locality.)
- What is your practice name (Weekly reports won’t include practice names but will enable us to support practices by addressing concerns or escalating issues)
- What is your Operational Pressure Escalation Level (OPEL)? (Each OPEL rating is detailed on the form and is determined using the same criteria as those applied in Secondary Care. See below:)
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- OPEL 1 – your capacity is such that you are able to maintain patient flow and are able to meet anticipated demand within available resources.
- OPEL 2 – you are starting to show signs of pressure.
- OPEL 3 – you are experiencing major pressures compromising patient flow.
- OPEL 4 – you are continuing to experience escalating levels of pressure. There is increased potential for patient care and safety to be compromised.
- Practice Comments: (We ask that you summarise your experiences from the previous week. Your insights have always been a valuable means of informing stakeholders about the realities on the ‘front line.’
Below is a short recording of the new survey and how quick it is to complete:
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Our new style reports provide the OPEL rating and comments from practices on their current situation tailored to their geographical area. These are published and emailed to practices and stakeholders no later than the following Monday.
Practices: If your practice isn’t currently using OPEL, please bring this up at your next practice meeting. Would your team be interested in helping to raise awareness and promote parity of esteem for the challenges faced in General Practice?
Stakeholders: Please take a moment to review our weekly reports. These are shared with NHS England, Public Health, the GPC, the BMA, ICBs, MPs, and Government departments to support closer collaboration across the system. A sustainable General Practice is vital for all of us. When used proactively, these reports help the system anticipate peak pressures, as the status of each provider impacts the wider network.