GP practices have delivered a third more appointments than before the coronavirus pandemic – but trouble may be brewing with family doctors threatening strike action
GP practices have carried out seven million more appointments last year according to new NHS data.
Practices delivered 31.4 million appointments in June which is up 32% on the same month pre-pandemic. GP surgeries host more non-doctor staff like physiotherapists who now carry out more appointments, while around a third are not face-to-face.
There were 383.3 million appointments in the last 12 months, compared to 375.7 million in the previous year. It comes as the British Medical Association says its GPs members could strike unless they can help run new ‘community hub’ health centres being set up across the country in a major reform.
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Amanda Doyle, NHS England National Director for Primary Care and Community Services, said: “General practice teams have been working exceptionally hard to boost access and turn our services around, with today’s data showing important progress as over 7 million additional appointments were delivered in the past year.
“While services improve and patient satisfaction has started to rise, we know more needs to be done to improve access, which is why we remain committed to working with the government on delivering the 10-year plan to boost access and improve primary care services for patients.”
The Government’s Ten Year Health Plan will establish 300 new “neighbourhood health centres” across England to help keep people out of hospitals. They will offer scans, checkups, straightforward treatment, and broader life help. They will include doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, counsellors, physios, health visitors, weight-loss specialists and even job advisers – but so far little guidance has been issued on who will run them.
GPs want to lead new centres and are said to be ‘alarmed’ by hospital leaders’ attempts to make themselves central to the plans. The BMA has written to Health Secretary Wes Streeting and health minister Stephen Kinnock setting out six demands on pay, contract funding and how much extra money they will get to work in and run the hubs. The BMA wants its demands met by mid-September to avert a strike among family doctors.
Office for National Statistics polling in England shows 72% of people found contacting their GP practice easy, which was up from 60% less than a year ago in September 2024. Some 73% of patients rated their overall GP experience as good compared with 67% last year.
The latest GP Patient Survey also shows 53% found it easy to contact their practice by phone, up from 50%, while 49% found the NHS app easy to use which is almost double the 25% figure from the previous year.
The Government announced last week that an extra 2,000 GPs have been recruited through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS).
Health Minister, Ashley Dalton, said: “Through our 10 Year Health Plan we are shifting care from hospitals to community. Our Plan for Change will deliver Neighbourhood Health Services that will put GPs at the heart of delivering more personalised, proactive care in local areas when it is more convenient for patients. We are on a mission to rebuild our health service and give people better access to care when they need it.”
Dennis Reed, director of Silver Voices, which campaigns for elderly Brits, said: “Any improvement in access to GPs is welcome but it is far too early to be blowing trumpets. On the ground it is still frustratingly difficult for patients to see an actual GP.
“I suspect that many of these increased appointments are with other practice staff, where patients are often diverted for an initial diagnosis. GPs are still an elusive species in many parts of the country. And to celebrate the fact that less than half of patients find the NHS app easy to use is weird. Many older patients are unable to use the app at all because they do not have a smartphone or are unable to manipulate small screens.”