The situation is getting worse for the GPs in treating patients. They want more safe time to do so. They fear misdiagnosing patients due to short appointments which One in three GPs admitted. Many NHS doctors said consultancy times of around ten minutes put patients at risk and they would like to have ‘safe’ time frame of between 16 and 20 minutes. In Europe they have 16 minutes.
A poll of 200 GPs by law firm Slater and Gordon found four in five felt they did not always have enough time to make a proper diagnosis, 55 per cent in fear of missing serious health issues and 37 per cent worried about prescribing the wrong treatment. GPs in the UK have an average of 41.5 patient contacts every day – 60% more than the number considered safe by European GPs according to Pulse.
A survey of 900 GPs reveals that more than one in five GPs have more than 50 daily patient contacts, including face-to-face and telephone consultations, home visits and e-consultations. Some GPs said they had up to 70 patient contacts a day – with others saying that the pressure has forced them to resign or give up partnerships.
However, a leading European GP forum has recommended no more than 25 contacts a day. The BMA's GP Committee called for a limit to the number of consultations a GP carries out each day in its Urgent Prescription manifesto for general practice last year, but nothing has come of it. A Pulse investigation last year revealed that patient demand is increasing at the same time as the number of GPs is decreasing – meaning GPs will have to work an extra two hours a day to meet demand by 2022.
Dr Richard Vautrey, BMA GP Committee chair, said: 'We know that unmanageable and unsafe workload is the primary reason behind doctors leaving general practice, which is leading to serious issues including practices closing to new patients and other surgeries closing entirely. This workload pressure also means GPs are increasingly suffering from burnout and patients are being put at risk of unsafe care.It is time for the government to wake up and address this issue as their top priority.
Baldev Sharma
Rayners Lane, Harrow
