In the 2019 GP Agreement, funding was allocated to support and maintain GP services for communities with a high degree of social deprivation.

This grant is a practice support and does not attach to the individual GP but to the entire practice.

The below are minimum criteria for application and do not in themselves confer eligibility for grant support:

• The main centre of practice should be in an urban area. For clarity, urban is defined using the CSO definition as having a population of 1,500 or more.

• Practices that are in receipt of rural practice supports are not eligible to apply for the social deprivation support.

• Practices must have a minimum practice size of 350 GMS patients (for the purpose of this document a GMS patient is a holder of a Medical Card and excludes DVC holders) in order to be eligible to apply for the grant.

• Practices must also have a minimum number of 200 GMS patients living in disadvantaged areas (using Pobal indices) to qualify for the allowance.

• All patients in long-term care facilities are be excluded from this exercise as the address of the nursing home/care centre may create a distortion in terms of trying to assess the true socio/economic profile).

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The grant amount is according to the number of patients in socially deprived areas:

200-400 = €7,500

401-800 = €10,000

800+ = €12,500​​

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Relevant Costs/Vouching

The grant may be used for costs incurred in engaging additional medical personnel, additional nursing hours, additional key worker hours, additional counselling hours or additional practice admin hours (i.e. Relevant Costs).

It shall be a matter for the practice to ensure that the staff are suitably qualified, registered with the relevant professional body (where required) and are appropriately indemnified (where appropriate).

These are examples only and are not exhaustive but highlight that the grant must be used for additional services and associated costs.

• However, for the avoidance of doubt the grant cannot be used to make payments to GPs in the practice who hold GMS Contracts.

• It cannot be used for stand-alone equipment or other practice expenses, IT or running costs etc.

• The grant cannot be used to cover costs of practice nurses and/or practice secretaries contracted hours for which a subsidy is already in payment.

  • However, the practice may include the cost of additional hours for such staff under this grant provision.