GP Services
GPs are the gatekeepers to the NHS, controlling which patients are referred to hospital or specialist care as well as managing patient care in the community. With so much in the news about GP services it is an ideal time to look back at the controversial GP contract and consider what the impact has been for patients.
In 2001 a BMA survey showed that nearly half of GPs wanted to retired before 60 and 28% were considering leaving the profession. With a looming crisis in the number of GPs part of the 2002 NHS Reforms focussed on a new GP contract. After more than 16 months of negotiation a new contract was agreed between the BMA, Government and NHS Managers in 2003 which aimed to increase retention of dissatisfied GPs and recruit more doctors to the specialism.
The contract gave GPs more control over their workload and provided financial incentives for high quality care and an increased range of services. It also addressed recruitment with more flexible working hours and for the first time GPs were given the choice to opt out of out-of-hours-care.
Since the introduction of the contract in 2004 it has been the issue of out-of-hours services which has dominated of the news. By sacrificing £6,000 a year GPs have been able to hand over out-of-hours care to PCTs. However with the move away from 24 hour GP care the Patients Association has seen a huge increase in the number of calls to our Helpline about the availability and quality of out-of-hours service.
August 2007 saw another media storm when GP insurance companies announced soaring numbers of patient complaints since the new system was introduced. The lack of information about the GP co-operatives, private firms and independent doctors contracted to provide on call services has left patients confused over their local services. The quality of provision varies widely with services dependant on each individual PCT.
Following the announcement of increased complaints, The Patients Association’s Katherine Murphy said, “The GP contract wasn’t negotiated properly and patients were not consulted. It is yet again not patient friendly and now why should patients have to suffer?
“Those responsible for the negotiations now have a duty to the public – shareholders of the NHS – and patients – the customers to ensure value for money. The GPs were successful in securing a very attractive contract two years ago but it is not delivering a first class service."
The Patients Association continues to monitor access to GP services and Out-of-Hours care very carefully. We regularly hear of patients experiencing difficulties in obtaining a GP appointment or a poor service when trying to access Out-of-hours care. We call on both GPs and Primary Care Trusts to ensure they are providing the highest level of care possible to their patients.
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