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The East London GP has rammed a rod up the back of the profession and challenged it to be more radical in defending itself.
Dr Applebee proposed the LMCs Conference motion in May that charged the GPC with exploring the possibility of industrial action if NHS managers did not put forward an acceptable solution to the crisis in general practice.
The GPC has now accepted managers’ pledges on GP workload and decided not to hold a ballot. But Dr Applebee will continue her campaigning for a more militant stance: ‘General practice is in crisis now and we don’t have time for protracted talking.’
Her campaigning nature has endeared her to colleagues, who highlighted how she ‘works tirelessly as chair of our LMC to support GPs’ and ‘campaigns for rights of patients and refugees and against social injustice’.
Dr Appleby was heavily involved in mobilising local doctors during the junior doctors’ strike in her role as BMA honorary secretary of Tower Hamlets and the Unite union representative on GPC, including organising rallies and picket lines.
Why influential: Brave LMC leader pushing for a fightback
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