RCGP response to the NAO report into contracts for general
practice services in England
Responding to the NAO report into contracts for general
practice services in England, Professor Steve Field, RCGP Chairman,
said:
"The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) welcomes the
report. Prior to the contracts we were aware that the morale
of GPs was low and there was a major recruitment crisis both in
training and professional practice across the whole of the
country. Those problems were associated with working long
hours, for which many felt undervalued.
"We are pleased therefore that the new GP contract has succeeded
in bringing new GPs into the profession and keeping good doctors in
the NHS, which can only be good news for patients.
"The RCGP was not involved in negotiating the GP contract but
played a crucial role in the development of the QOF. Thanks
to the new contracts, GPs have been able to spend more time on
preventative care of patients and health promotion whilst also
being able to spend more time with patients who have complex and
multiple problems. We are pleased that the NAO report
highlights a number of improvements in the quality of patient care
and also in the access that patients have to GPs and other members
of the primary health care teams.
"The QOF has been a success for patients and for GPs and their
teams. The RCGP looks forward to working with the Department
of Health to help it develop a clear strategy for the years to
come. The RCGP is not complacent. Our Members and
Fellows continue to strive for better quality care for their
patients. We are concerned that three years after
responsibility for out of hours care passed to PCTs patients are
still confused and find it difficult to access care out of
hours. We would urge PCTs to look at the College's Out of
Hours Toolkit published on our website to help in signposting
services available.
"The RCGP also supports the need for improved commissioning
skills in order to truly bring about world-class commissioning and
further improve the quality of care provided for our patients in
our National Health Service across the four countries of the United
Kingdom."
ends
For more information please contact the RCGP press
office 020 7344 3135/3136/3137/3129 or email press@rcgp.org.uk