Royal College of General Practitioners' report decreasing number of GPs

[Jow11]

When one considers how many specialities there are in Hospital Consulting, it is astonishing that we have a system that produced more GPs than all specialists combined. See the link below.

rcgp.org.uk/campaign-home/n...

[Clutter]

I'm astonished that the numbers of specialists outnumbers GPs. Too many chiefs and not enough indians?

[twinks]

There's no specialist in fibro, me, in our area health board and they won't send us outside

[teacherspet]

But it still doesn't mean you get referred easily. I had to wait nearly 5 years before I got a referral to an Endo.

They need far more GPs if as they insist GPs are the gate keepers to the NHS - which is something else that should be looked into as it's not working.

[Jow11 in reply to teacherspet]

Yes, I totally agree with what you say about difficulty of getting a referral. I was refused a referral to an Endo even though I was willing to go private. The whole system has to be changed so GPs are NO longer gatekeepers. Why is it that people with very limited medical knowledge are making decisions whether people can get specialist care?

If I am a self paying patient why do I still need a referral? It is a ridiculous situation that needs to be changed. However, I don't know if it will be possible with the attitude of the British public who are so used to the GP system. I strongly believe that the system in continental Europe where GPs are not gatekeepers is one that we should adopt, too. We would need far fewer GPs then and could have ready access to more appropriate specialist doctors. I believe it would improve patient care, save the NHS money, make private care more affordable and result in better outcomes. The NHS wouldn't be wasting money on unnecessary and repeated visits to the GP and on the wrong treatments and drugs. Many GPs receive significantly more pay than hospital specialists yet the system does not appear to hold them as accountable. I also understand that one can be fast-tracked through the immigration asylum system if one can qualify as a GP in the UK.