Thousands of GPs ‘badly let down’
The Government and NHS England have been accused of “badly letting down” tens of thousands of GPs by leading doctors in Yorkshire.
It comes as scathing criticism has been voiced by GP leaders towards NHS England for “repeatedly failing” to resolve the crisis of falling numbers in the profession.
THE GOVERNMENT and NHS England have been accused of “badly letting down” tens of thousands of GPs by leading doctors in Yorkshire.
It comes as scathing criticism has been voiced by GP leaders towards NHS England for “repeatedly failing” to resolve the crisis of falling numbers in the profession while also being “deaf” to general practice needs, which have faced unprecedented strain due to the pandemic.
The call to action comes as the British Medical Association’s (BMA) England GP committee of 55 members passed a motion of no confidence in the leadership of NHS England.
The BMA – which represents roughly 160,000 medical professionals – also claims the NHS sent a “tone deaf” letter to practices last week about face-to-face appointments and longer-term failure to support or recognise the efforts of the profession over the last 14 months.
Dr Richard Vautrey, a Leeds GP, has warned NHS England and the Government must “act now” to fix a broken system so that patients as well as doctors have a GP service that is “fit for purpose”.
Dr Vautrey, who practises at Meanwood Health Centre and is BMA GP committee chairman, said: “This motion sounds a much-needed warning bell, rung by GPs at the end of their tether, emotionally and physically exhausted by the past 14 months.
“Without doubt, the motivation for this comes entirely from the widespread anger, frustration and disappointment felt by tens of thousands of GPs about the cavalier ways in which they have been treated and badly let down by the Government and NHS England.
“These organisations have repeatedly failed to resolve the crisis of falling numbers of GPs who are trying to make inroads into a mammoth backlog of patients needing care, but also properly recognise and celebrate the incredible contribution of general practice throughout the pandemic and the vaccination programme.”
Dr Brian McGregor, a GP in York and the BMA Yorkshire regional council chairman, added: “Today’s vote sends a clear message to NHS England that GPs feel completely let down by the way they’ve been treated, and that practices need support and recognition, not reprimanding.”
The motion of no confidence, passed at an online meeting yesterday, also demands an explanation from the Government as to why the letter was sent last week.
Dr Vautrey, who has previously raised concerns that frustrated GPs are leaving the profession and trainees are discouraged from joining, said: “Last week’s woefully badly judged letter from NHS England was the final straw for many hard-working GPs who have gone above and beyond over the last year. Staff are exhausted and so to receive a letter from NHS England last week not recognising these efforts and implying that we had somehow been neglecting our patients’ needs was a massive blow to morale when we’re already nearing rock bottom.”
Dr Vautrey added NHS England and the Government needed to address a current system that fail to consider the day-to-day reality in scores of doctors’ surgeries.
He said: “The onus is now on NHS England and Ministers to fix a broken system so that patients as well as doctors have a GP service that is fit for purpose.”
An NHS spokesperson said: “GPs have worked hard throughout the pandemic and are now pulling out all the stops to roll out the biggest and fastest vaccination programme in NHS history.”
Motivation for this comes from widespread anger and frustration. Dr Richard Vautrey, BMA chair.