BMJ 2014;348:g1748 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g1748
Page 1 of 2
News
NEWS Royal college calls for 11% of NHS budget to reach primary care by 2017 Gareth Iacobucci BMJ
More than 34 million patients in England will be unable to get an appointment with their family doctor this year because of chronic underinvestment in the service, the Royal College of General Practitioners has warned.
The college’s chairwoman, Maureen Baker, said that general practice had been “brought to its knees” by continual reductions in funding over the past decade. She called for an increase in resources to avert the “crisis” and enable practices to cope with rapidly increasing demand. The college said that GPs were now seeing 40 million more patients each year than in 2008-09 and currently saw around 340 million patients a year.
But it warned that cuts to funding, coupled with the surge in demand from a growing and ageing population with increasingly complex medical needs, would continue to leave many patients unable to see a health professional when they needed to.
The college’s forecast is based on its analysis of the latest results from the GP Patient Survey,1 published in December, which found that 10% of patients who tried to book a consultation with a GP or a practice nurse in 2012-13 were unable to do so.
The college called on ministers to reverse the underinvestment in primary healthcare, which saw just 8.5% of the NHS budget in England spent on general practice in 2011-12, compared with 10.95% in 2005-06.
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To address the issue the college has launched a joint campaign with the National Association for Patient Participation, calling on the government and NHS England to increase investment in primary care and ensure that 11% of the NHS budget is invested in general practice by 2017. Baker said, “The unprecedented decline in funding for healthcare in the community has brought general practice to its knees. “GPs and practice nurses can’t keep doing more for less, and now that funding for general practice in England has slumped to just 8.5% of the NHS budget the service we provide is in crisis.”
She added, “All three political parties say that they want to see more patients being treated in the community where care can be provided to patients more economically, in their own surroundings—and yet resources are increasingly being diverted away from communities and into hospitals.
“If the government and NHS England really want to give general practice the tools to provide high quality and comprehensive care in the community, they must increase funding for the sector to 11% of the NHS budget by 2017.” 1
The GP Patient Survey. Dec 2013. www.gp-patient.co.uk/.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:g1748 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
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BMJ 2014;348:g1748 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g1748
Page 2 of 2
NEWS
Figure
For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
Page 1 of 2
News
NEWS Royal college calls for 11% of NHS budget to reach primary care by 2017 Gareth Iacobucci BMJ
More than 34 million patients in England will be unable to get an appointment with their family doctor this year because of chronic underinvestment in the service, the Royal College of General Practitioners has warned.
The college’s chairwoman, Maureen Baker, said that general practice had been “brought to its knees” by continual reductions in funding over the past decade. She called for an increase in resources to avert the “crisis” and enable practices to cope with rapidly increasing demand. The college said that GPs were now seeing 40 million more patients each year than in 2008-09 and currently saw around 340 million patients a year.
But it warned that cuts to funding, coupled with the surge in demand from a growing and ageing population with increasingly complex medical needs, would continue to leave many patients unable to see a health professional when they needed to.
The college’s forecast is based on its analysis of the latest results from the GP Patient Survey,1 published in December, which found that 10% of patients who tried to book a consultation with a GP or a practice nurse in 2012-13 were unable to do so.
The college called on ministers to reverse the underinvestment in primary healthcare, which saw just 8.5% of the NHS budget in England spent on general practice in 2011-12, compared with 10.95% in 2005-06.
For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
To address the issue the college has launched a joint campaign with the National Association for Patient Participation, calling on the government and NHS England to increase investment in primary care and ensure that 11% of the NHS budget is invested in general practice by 2017. Baker said, “The unprecedented decline in funding for healthcare in the community has brought general practice to its knees. “GPs and practice nurses can’t keep doing more for less, and now that funding for general practice in England has slumped to just 8.5% of the NHS budget the service we provide is in crisis.”
She added, “All three political parties say that they want to see more patients being treated in the community where care can be provided to patients more economically, in their own surroundings—and yet resources are increasingly being diverted away from communities and into hospitals.
“If the government and NHS England really want to give general practice the tools to provide high quality and comprehensive care in the community, they must increase funding for the sector to 11% of the NHS budget by 2017.” 1
The GP Patient Survey. Dec 2013. www.gp-patient.co.uk/.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:g1748 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2014
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
BMJ 2014;348:g1748 doi: 10.1136/bmj.g1748
Page 2 of 2
NEWS
Figure
For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
