Only one in ten GP trainees expect to be doing full-time clinical work in five years’ time, a major report from the King’s Fund think-tank has revealed.
The report – Understanding pressures in general practice – also claims that the crisis in general practice has been ‘invisible’ for policy-makers due to failure by the DH and NHS England to collect data.
Its analysis of 30 million patient contacts from 177 practices found that the number of consultations since 2010/11 had grown by 15%, echoing a recent study published in the Lancet. GP leaders said that the lack of data on general practice had led ‘many to turn a blind eye to the ever-worsening crisis’ in the profession.
The report comes two weeks after NHS England released its ‘General Practice Forward View’, which committed to devoting more than 10% of the NHS budget into general practice.
The King’s Fund welcomed NHS England’s proposed measures, but warned that general practice was in a crisis. It pointed to an increase in demand and a reduction in funding, as well as a recruitment crisis.
And it warned that the recruitment crisis could get worse, as a survey of 318 trainees revealed they were shunning a full-time career in general practice – and not only because of family commitments.
Full story in Pulse 5 May 2016