GP leaders in England have demanded an end to Saturday and evening appointments by April next year.
Under Network DES requirements which came into force last month, GP networks have to provide additional Saturday appointments between 9-5 and evening patient appointments until 8pm.
But ‘extending the times of providing services is not a solution but exacerbates the problems faced in primary care’, said a motion passed at last Thursday’s England LMC conference.
The motion, passed in all parts, also warned of ‘enormous concerns’ that enhanced access ‘will destabilise existing out-of-hours GP services, with harm resulting to patients’.
And it said that LMCs ‘demand’ that ‘this scheme be repealed from April 2023’.
Proposing the motion, Dr Bethan Rees from Hertfordshire LMC said the requirement places ‘extreme pressure on GPs and the primary care workforce’.
She argued that while GPs ‘thrive in progressing innovative teams’ and ‘making a difference to patients’, the requirement ‘forces GPs to work in isolation’.
She also claimed patients would rather have face-to-face appointments inside core hours.
She said: ‘It is not wanted by patients, it is not safe, it is not an effective primary care service. It should be abandoned.’
Dr Annie Farrell from Liverpool LMC added that the requirement was a was ‘nonsense’ as ‘patients don’t want these appointments’.
‘What we need is for the funds to be straight allocated to general practice so we are able to provide better services,’ she added.
Dr Manu Agrawal from South Staffordshire LMC addressed already stretched GPs’ working hours and ‘unimaginable’ workload.
He asked: ‘How much more we, as GPs, are going to cover? When are we going to say stop?’
Dr David Tinkler from Kernow spoke against the motion, saying that he would rather take it as a reference in order to not destabilise PCNs.
However Dr Rees clarified that the motion was ‘not for or against PCN’ just ‘about extra hours’.
‘I would like the funding to be within core hours,’ she summarised.
In a landmark decision, Thursday’s LMC conference also voted in favour of a reduction in GP core opening hours to 9am to 5pm.
Motion in full:
AGENDA COMMITTEE TO BE PROPOSED BY HERTFORDSHIRE: That conference with regards to the
enhanced access requirements of the PCN DES:
(i) believes that extending the times of providing services is not a solution but exacerbates the
problems faced in primary care PASSED
(ii) has enormous concerns that this will destabilise existing out-of-hours GP services, with
harm resulting to patients PASSED
(iii) demands that this scheme be repealed from April 2023 PASSED
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READERS' COMMENTS [4]
Please note, only GPs are permitted to add comments to articles
Er, you signed up to the PCN gimmick. Nonsense motion. Get paid, not to get shafted?
Agree.
I hate these extra hours as much as anyone, but PCN participation is voluntary.
If you think it’s so bad, come out of the PCN.
Stories like this make us look like idiots.
NHS England: Can I punch you in the face?
GPs: No
NHS England: What if I pay you?
GPs: OK then.
NHS England: OK. Here’s the money, I’m going to punch you now.
GPs: Whoa – you can’t punch me. I know I said yes, but you can’t.
NHS England: Err…?!
GPs: Can I keep the money though?
I like the comments above.
Yes. They got punched in the face – and then next year they are going to get kicked in the teeth. And the year after, get their clothes stolen until they shiver and realise – they mean nothing in a PCN – all they did is they got silenced as individuals, were made to now depend on funding/models and IT infiltration, are now training and scapegoating the ARRS who are having a blast, and your are still being laughed at on a Saturday morning. But don’t complain – you are pocketing some pennies for this – you look foolish with child like whimpering. Can you explain why the PCN model hasn’t made you exponentially more ecstatic, efficient, meaningful and chilled out? Working together in a more inclusive way, 100%.