For the last few years, English general practices — which are, traditionally, small — have been encouraged to serve larger populations of registered patients by merging or collaborating with each other. Meanwhile, patient surveys have suggested that continuity of care and access to care are worsening.
British Journal of General Practice:
I can relate to that as prior to Covid Lockdown in March it mostly took 3 to 4 weeks to get an appointment.
My GP surgery has joined up with practices in other villages. It now takes over three weeks for a GP to see a consultant’s report. All of the main goes to one of the four practises and a secretary there then scans them into the system. It is a nuisance when prescription changes are needed.
It was bad enough before Covid but it's even worse now. There are so many stories out there about poor GP services. I do hope there are still some good experiences out there but sadly I can't say that about mine.
My surgery had just merged with the other one it was twinned with. It’s been a bit of a nightmare...actually I would say the pharmacy has been the biggest nightmare! Tablets are always muddled every time!
The old doctor working from the front sitting room of his private house might not have been half as efficient, but I always felt a lot more confidence in him than I do in todays surgery. 🙁
You never see the same doctor twice , well I mean speak to them on the phone . 🤣
How much has the population changed what is the ratio of patients to doctor today. There is a shortage of doctors . There is only 10 mins allotted for each appointment
One problem is that there are many women doctors now and who have families to care for , so work part-time and so no overtime. We are told that we demand appointments and medications unnecessarily.
I do think as a whole we expect too much sometimes. We used to have free scrips , now most pay but , we might find we have to pay a fee for an appointment. Something has to change as it has become almost impossible to see a doctor . Due to covid in my practice now we all have to accept telephone calls as routine and this might become common practice. I request a call and i get whoever is free next. No continuity there. But they meet their targets.
I woke up one day and couldnt move for intense pain in knee , i have a painful knee not swollen , not inflamed, not creaking , no warning at all previously
Pp Result - I am told that I have osteo arthritis. Doctor says paracetamol which doesnt do anything usually. So says try some ibuprofen . I said I thought you avoid NSAIDs with lung problem Ignored that and was then told just to try paracetamol and phone again in a fortnight if it is no better. It wasnt . Then i have cocodamol but constipation is severe so give that up. Then i have to wait a another week a for a physio to call.
We all have experiences like this.
My gps(3surgeries) look after 10,000 people. We have over past few yrs taken on new drs - and very unfortunately few drs have taken early retirement.there are a cpl of newer gps just not of same caliber,,at all
I have to be honest, I have only been on a GP's books for 4.5 years and rarely request an appointment the last time was for a medicine review in Jan and a routine appointment last Nov, because of Pneumonia. Along with one phone call to replace my rescue pack after my Covid-19 infection.
Despite my multiple comorbidities all of which have been dealt with by the hospital, you might call me a generally healthy, sick person? I can only really moan about one thing, the receptionists with their rather arrogant, jobsworth hats, on those rare times that I need to see a GP. They make me feel like a hypochondriac wanting an appointment every 5 minutes, a very unwelcoming attitude when in fact I am a cash cow for the practice.
The main problem for me is not getting access to a GP, but to THE GP who knows me and understands my health problem. I might have to wait 2-3 weeks for that. Thank goodness I have the rescue antibiotics and there's still access to on line prescription renewal with an option to ask for something supplementary or different.
My local medical centre serves 4 villages. There service was normally good in pre Covid times. Sadly there as been a fair amount of building in the villages over recent years and plans for more to come. The population in my area is expanding but sadly the extra money for health services within the community is not.
Regrettably this is true. It used to be the,”Family Doctor,” but in most cases these days the doctor you see does not know you your family or your health problems and has to spend time reading up on the notes. So sad.
We were lucky enough to escape from our previous practice which was dreadful. Arrogant receptionists, some excellent doctors and some- well there was the one who told me I did not have COPD- and they usually put you in with a practice nurse, even when you asked to see a doctor. We are much happier with our new surgery, which is relatively small and I rather think doctor run. The other one was run by Virgin.
I have a Welsh GP, and although the border bureaucracy for those of us who live in England can be irritating, that is nothing to do with the practice. The GP I see is excellent, and the receptionist will always try to give me an appointment with him if he is available. In normal times it can be quite a wait, but not for emergencies. There is always a doctor available. On the whole we have a good service.
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