GP industrial action will undo progress made in accessing surgeries: expert

GP industrial action will undo progress made in accessing surgeries: expert

Brits were happier with their GP services during July and August compared to January and February as the new Government prioritised local surgeries – the NHS’ ‘front door’. However, the ongoing GP work to rule and potential further industrial action will unravel this progress, argues a leading expert.

New official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal Brits were happier with their access to local surgeries and health centres during July and August than they were during January and February. The results reveal the number of patients saying they had difficulty accessing their GP fell from 30.9% in January/February to 18.7% in July/August.

76% of Brits got through to their surgery the same day in July/August, up from 72.5% in January/February. Just 5% of people failed to make contact at all, down from 8.5% in January/February. This led to a rise in patients rating their overall GP experience as good or very good from 64.3% in January/February to 67.4% in these latest results.

However, doctors across the country are embarking on new measures following a vote by the British Medical Association (BMA) over the summer. This has prompted a leading health expert to say the recent good work in improving patient access will be undone by continued industrial action.

Dr Avinash Hari Narayanan (MBChB), Clinical Lead at London Medical Laboratory, says: ‘The latest healthcare access results are encouraging and point to a number of improvements made by local surgeries across the country. However, all this good work could come undone very quickly.

‘In his first major announcement in July, Wes Streeting, the new Health Secretary, said he would divert billions of pounds from hospitals to GPs to “fix the front door to the NHS”. This week, he told the BBC that, within its first six weeks, the new Government put £100 million into GP unemployment and that it intends to grow primary care in general practice as a proportion of the NHS budget.

‘However, the BMA says there is still “insufficient funding” and that surgeries are now choosing a range of work to rule measures. Dr Bramall-Stainer, chair of the BMA’s GPs committee, has also warned that its members may hold a further ballot to gauge support for significantly increased measures, potentially including strike action.

‘Obviously, years of underfunding have taken their toll and doctors have reached the end of their tethers. Less than 10% of the £165bn NHS budget in England is spent on primary care and that share has been falling, despite record demand at surgeries. However, Mr Streeting has pledged to reverse this trend, boosting the proportion of the budget for primary care so patients can access help sooner.

‘Ultimately, escalating industrial action is likely to result in further long-term strain on local services. Long-suffering Brits who may have been breathing a sigh of relief that the worst of NHS strikes are now behind them may have to brace themselves for yet further disruption.

‘For people concerned about easy and quick access to healthcare, it’s perhaps useful to know that revolutionary new blood tests introduced in the last few years mean people have swift access to a vast array of information about their health through a simple finger-prick blood test, which can even be taken in their own home.

‘For example, London Medical Laboratory’s General Health Profile blood test monitors seven key areas of health. It includes muscle and bone profile, liver & kidney function, risk of diabetes (by checking levels of HbA1c), cholesterol levels, iron levels and even the risk of gout.

‘Not only is a blood test easy to book, either online or at participating pharmacies and health stores, but it can complement the role of the NHS by identifying problems before any symptoms have shown, easing the strain on surgeries. London Medical Laboratory’s General Health Profile blood test can be taken at home through the post, or at one of the many drop-in clinics that offer these tests across London and nationwide in over 120 selected pharmacies and health stores. For full details, see: https://www.londonmedicallaboratory.com/product/general-health