New report ‘lays bare’ challenges facing general practice

Responding to the Health Foundation’s ‘GP Funding in England’ report, published today, Prof Victoria Tzortziou Brown, President of the Royal College of GPs, said: "This report lays bare the challenges that GPs and our teams are working under as they strive to deliver the care our patients need; increasing workload, too few GPs and general practice's share of NHS funding at its lowest in a decade. There are now around 2,300 patients for every fully qualified full-time equivalent GP in England - a 13% increase since 2015. This is placing enormous pressure on GPs and our teams, making it harder for patients to access timely care. 

"The report also highlights persistent inequalities in how funding is distributed. As a result, it is often our patients living in deprived areas of the country who are bearing the brunt of years of underfunding of general practice and poor workforce planning. We need a system that ensures resources better reflect areas of greatest need, which is why we've supported the Government's plans to review the Carr-Hill formula.

"The Government wants to shift more care from hospitals into the community - an aspiration that makes sense. But that cannot be achieved while general practice's share of NHS spending continues to fall. If more care is to move into the community, the resources and workforce needed to deliver that care must move with it. GPs and our teams already deliver the vast majority of NHS patient contacts, and in doing so we alleviate pressure across the health service, keeping it cost-effective and sustainable. GPs and our teams cannot keep being expected to do more for less.

"As such, the College is calling for a Primary Care Investment Standard to secure sustained, year-on-year investment in general practice. We also need to see the long-awaited 10-year workforce plan published with a clear focus on recruiting, retaining and supporting the GPs needed to improve access, strengthen continuity of care and deliver high-quality care closer to home."

Further information

RCGP press office: 0203 188 7659

press@rcgp.org.uk

Notes to editors

The Royal College of General Practitioners is a network of more than 54,000 family doctors working to improve care for patients. We work to encourage and maintain the highest standards of general medical practice and act as the voice of GPs on education, training, research and clinical standards.