15.04.15
Manifesto pledges to ‘quickly create thousands of new GPs’ are unachievable
The major political parties are making promises they will not be able to keep, according to Dr Michael Dixon, chair of the NHS Alliance.
Dr Dixon, who is a GP of long standing, said: “We cannot quickly create thousands of new GPs, as the major parties are suggesting.”
He was responding to BMA survey suggesting that a third of GPs could retire in the next five years because they feel stressed, under-resourced and facing too many pressures.
Dr Dixon, a member of NHE’s editorial board, said: “This news is unsurprising. The average age of GPs has been increasing steadily over the past decade and not enough is being done in medical schools to encourage the next generation of students to choose general practice as a career. General practice has received a real terms cut to funding, but the demand is higher than ever before. It is little wonder that many GPs are thinking about working part time, moving abroad or taking early retirement.
“As part of the solution to this problem, NHS Alliance’s ‘Tomorrow’s Leaders Network’ aims to inspire and develop the leaders of tomorrow. We have a network of GPs, nurses, pharmacists, eye and hearing professionals, housing and social care providers, and many others, who are determined to become the next generation of leaders within our health service. This initiative is inspiring the next generation of healthcare professionals to lead primary care to a better place – one which complements hospital care, but treats patients in the community wherever possible, and places an emphasis on prevention rather than cure.
“We cannot quickly create thousands of new GPs, as the major parties are suggesting. We must, however, create an environment where patients are cared for in their community, by providing joined up care, utilising the existing skills of general practice, community pharmacy, community nursing and many others. To make ‘communities of care’ a reality, we must ensure there is sufficient resource invested into all primary care providers – and the new models of care – ensuring prevention, and keeping people well and out of hospital, is the priority for the future.”
Dr Dixon recently wrote for NHE about the reasons why not enough junior doctors are choosing general practice.
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