Only 10% of GPs work full-time in a family surgery

‘OLD-FASHIONED’ GPs who work full-time in a family surgery are fast becoming a dying breed, according to figures obtained by The Mail on Sunday.

Just over one general practitioner in ten is now in a permanent, full-time position, statistics compiled by the General Medical Council (GMC) reveal. Instead, four in ten now operate full or part-time as locums where they can earn up to £200,000 a year and avoid the administrative and financial burdens of running a surgery.

The GMC found 6,473 GPs in England and Scotland were last year working on a single full-time permanent contract, down from 10,375 in 2013. Over the period, the proportion of GPs working in such a manner has almost halved, from 20 per cent to 11 per cent.

Meanwhile, the number working as locums in some capacity soared from 15,711 (30 per cent of the GP workforce) to 22,984 (41 per cent). Charlie Massey, chief executive of the GMC, said: ‘Doctors are making different choices around their work-life balance and career development.’

Professor Martin Marshall, of the Royal College of GPs, added: ‘A full-time career in general practice is simply not doable for many GPs.’