New contract to cut workload for GPs and set £80,000 minimum wage expectation
KATRINE BUSSEY
The Scottish Government will also provide an extra £30 million over the next three years to help GPs reduce the risks associated with owning or leasing their own premises.
The new contract promises a “refocusing” of the role of family doctors as “expert medical generalists”. Some duties currently performed by GPs will be carried out by other healthcare professionals in the primary care team, such as community mental health services, while pharmacists will deal more with repeat prescriptions and drug reviews for patients.
Doctors’ leaders at the British Medical Association (BMA) Scotland involved in drafting the new contract say it could make general practice “fit for the future”.
Dr Alan McDevitt, chairman of the BMA’s Scottish GP committee, said: “By expanding the primary care team and working with integration authorities to improve patient access to services delivered by other professionals, such as practice nurses, pharmacists and physiotherapists, GPs can have more time to concentrate on being GPs.
Speaking during a visit to a GP practice in Clydebank, West Dunbartonshire, Health Secretary Shona Robison, said: “GPs tell us they want to spend more time with patients and less time on bureaucracy, while patients say they want better access to GPs when they really need them.
“We have listened and, I believe, we have achieved that balance.”