Clinical Negligence Solicitors

A new poll by the British Medical Association (BMA) has found that GPs need more funding – and need to more time to spend with patients – to improve GP care.

BBC News reports that more than 15,000 GPs in the UK were questioned by the BMA and one in every nine GP responded by saying that a heavy workload had a negative impact on GP care – with only one in ten feeling that ten-minute GP slots per patient were adequate.

All three main political parties have placed the NHS at the centre of their election campaigns – and the Conservatives have proposed that GP services should operate seven days a week.

UKIP has previously suggested that GPs should be stationed in A&E departments to meet the increasing number of patients who use A&E as a point of access to primary care if they unable to book a GP appointment quickly.

Labour Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham has claimed that NHS care has “gone backwards”.

The Liberal Democrats have focused on mental health care and the need to give mental health parity with physical healthcare services.

The Conservatives rejected the criticism of the health services under the coalition government and said that the coalition had launched a “challenge fund” to help GPs look at new ways to improve access to services, including extending GP surgery opening hours and using new technology such as Skype for online GP consultations.

The BMA received responses to its questionnaire from nearly one-third of GPs working in the NHS – and found that just 8% felt that ten-minute slots were sufficient to deal with patients’ concerns – while 93% admitted that a heavy workload had had a negative impact on the services they provided to patients.

A total of 37% of GP who responded to the poll said that their workload was “unmanageable”.

Around half, however, agreed that opening hours should be extended – while 76% said funding for NHS GP services should be increased, with 74% agreeing that more GPs should be employed by the health service.

It is estimated that GPs now see as many as one million patients every day – five years ago the figure was 850,00.

Chair the BMA GP Committee, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, said:

“GPs want to provide better services and spend more time with their patients – especially the increasing number of older people who often have a range of multiple health needs that require intensive, co-ordinated care.

“Many GPs do not feel they have enough time to spend with their patients and that these intense pressures are beginning to damage local services.”

Chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners, Dr Maureen Baker, said:

“It is important that patients are able to see a GP when they need one – and that patients with complex and multiple illnesses are given the time that they need; but hard-pressed family doctors are already working record hours to try and meet demand."

A spokeswoman for NHS England said its five-year plan – published in Autumn 2014 – recognised GPs were under pressure – and that a “step change” was needed in investment, which would kick off this year with an extra £250 million to improve GP premises.

She added that there was flexibility in GP services to enable doctors to extend consultations beyond 10 minutes.

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