Busy GPs set to open on holidays
Radical plan to reduce strain on overstretched A&E departments
RADICAL plans to ease the growing strain on hospitals could see the Scottish Government forcing GP surgeries to open on public holidays.
Health Secretary Shona Robison yesterday announced a review of holiday health and care services to avoid patients going to A&E departments.
Over the Christmas period, many health services – including GP surgeries – close or run at a reduced level for eight days out of 11 and shut on public holidays over Easter weekends.
New figures show that the NHS suffered one of its worst A&E waiting times since records began, with 100 patients spending more than 12 hours in A&E in the first week of the year.
But the review announcement sparked warnings by doctors’ leaders not to ‘risk’ deterring people from becoming GPs.
GP surgeries could be forced to open over public holidays under radical plans to halt the growing pressure on Scotland’s overstretched hospitals.
Health Secretary Shona Robison yesterday announced a review of holiday health and care services to avoid patients ending up in A&E, and to ease bed blocking.
Over the festive period many services including GP surgeries close or operate at a reduced level for eight days out of 11. There is also a four-day NHS shutdown over Easter weekends.
But there are growing concerns the long closures are putting too much pressure on hospitals.
The announcement prompted warnings from doctors’ leaders not to ‘risk’ deterring future GPs from becoming family doctors.
However, it came as latest figures indicate the NHS has suffered one of its worst A&E waiting times on record.
One hundred patients spent more than 12 hours in A&E during the first week of the New Year.
Only 87.9 per cent of A&E patients were dealt with within the fourhour target, while the troubled £842million Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow recorded its worst performance since weekly reporting of A&E began. It saw just 74.8 per cent of patients within four hours.
The Scottish Daily Mail last week reported that some emergency patients were turned away because wards were full and others endured long trolley waits in corridors.
Yesterday, the Scottish Government said the review will examine the ‘whole health and social care system over public holiday weekends and how hospital, community and social care services could be co-ordinated more effectively’.
Miss Robison insisted that A&E waits were at ‘similar levels’ to previous years.
She said: ‘This review will examine what more can be done to reduce the impact of public holidays on patients who need care during this period.’
She added: ‘This is not about asking our doctors, nurses, social workers, pharmacists, or paramedics to work even harder, this is about looking at how we work in different, integrated ways to benefit patients and service providers.’
Scottish Tory health spokesman Donald Cameron said: ‘It is becoming less acceptable for doctors’ surgeries to simply shut up shop for days on end over Christmas. People across all different professions have to keep going through the festive period, not least the NHS colleagues of GPs working in our hospitals.
‘As such, it is right this is reviewed, with the possibility of creating a more comprehensive and flexible service in years to come.’
But Dr Alan McDevitt, chairman of the British Medical Association’s Scottish GP committee, said: ‘In the midst of severe difficulties in recruiting and retaining GPs, we need to be incredibly careful not to do anything that risks making a career as a GP less attractive and undermines efforts to ensure we have enough GPs to meet Scotland’s needs.
‘Vacancy rates at GP practices are already running at around 28 per cent and we simply cannot afford that situation to get even worse. It is important to remember that if a patient needs to see a GP on evenings, weekends and public holidays then the out-of-hours service is already there to ensure they are able to do so.
‘Health boards are fully aware when public holidays are approaching and should be capable of putting staff and resources in place to manage them.’