Primary care networks (PCNs) bring GP practices together with community, mental health, social care, pharmacy, hospital and voluntary services in their local areas.
They build on existing primary care services to better meet the needs of local people closer to home by enabling more proactive, personalised, coordinated and integrated health and and care services. This allows GPs to be proactive in the way they care the people and communities they serve rather than relying on reactive appointments. These networks were set up to help deliver the NHS Long Term Plan.
Every PCN is led by a clinical director who may be a GP, general practice nurse, clinical pharmacist or other clinical profession working in general practice.