Almost half of patients cannot name their GP

NEARLY half of Britons have no idea who their GP is, a study reveals.

And only 41 per cent have managed to get an appointment with their doctor in the past year.

With rising patient numbers and lengthy waits for appointments, 43 per cent say they do not know the name of their own doctor.

One in six – 16 per cent – said they had no idea what any doctors at their surgery were called.

Some 16 per cent could name one doctor but not their own.

With difficulties in getting to see a doctor, 32 per cent had resorted to Googling their symptoms, while 9 per cent of 18 to 34-year-olds asked for advice on social media. When they could not see their doctor, 13 per cent said they ignored the problem, leading to 5 per cent ending up in hospital.

The study of 2,000 people was carried out to mark the launch of Dr Christian Jessen’s new show 12 Hours to Cure Your Street.

In the show, Dr Jessen, 41, races to make as many house calls as possible in a 12-hour shift.

He said: ‘People do struggle to get appointments with their GPs for various reasons and so it was great to be able to offer them an extra opportunity to seek out medical advice.’