Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
700,000 patients lose face-to-face GP appointments
Health danger too great for some docs at high risk
HUNDREDS of thousands of patients are unlikely to get faceto-face GP appointments.
Doctors who are vulnerable to catching Covid-19 are expected to ban the consultations.
The Health Foundation says its research suggests it could leave 710,000 patients in England unable to see their GP in person.
Experts say symptoms can be missed over the phone while many vulnerable patients are reluctant to get in touch or open up about their health if speaking remotely.
Dr Rebecca Fisher, a senior fellow at the charity and a practising GP said: “The ongoing risk of Covid-19 to the safety of both patients and GPS means that hundreds of thousands of people may find it much harder to get a face-to-face GP appointment.”
Health Secretary Matt Hancock has already called for consultations to be carried out over the phone or email “unless clinically necessary”.
NHS staff at higher risk due to factors such as age, ethnicity or underlying health conditions are advised to limit direct patient contact.
One in three GPS who single-handedly manage a practice are at high risk of death from Covid-19.
Single-handed practices run by a GP at high or very high risk are more than four times as likely to be in the most deprived areas than the richest.
The Heath Foundation is calling for GP cover to be provided to patients face-to-face where needed. It found 2.5 million patients are covered by a single-gp practice. Dr Fisher added: “There are plenty of circumstances where you will need to see a patient face to face. Often it’s to do a physical examination, for example if someone has a breast lump. “I’m very aware when I’m talking to someone over the phone that there might be someone else around who they might not be comfortable talking in front of. Some of my patients don’t have smartphones, Wifi or data, so using photographs – for example of a rash – isn’t an option for them.”
But some patients prefer appointments over the internet.
Diabetic financial worker Anthony James-smith, 34, from Birmingham, uses the Babylon GP at Hand app.
He said: “At my old GP getting an appointment was always a nightmare. When I heard that I could get video consultations through my phone I was intrigued. The main difference is speed and convenience.”