Any new GP access target must take pressures into account, says RCGP

‘Significant’ workload pressure on GPs must be taken into account before any new access targets are introduced by the Government, the RCGP has warned.

According to information obtained by HSJ, it is considering a target for ‘at least 80% of patients to report being satisfied with their experience of contacting their GP practice by March 2027’.

The most recent monthly data from the Office for National Statistics showed that 73% of adults who tried to contact their GP practice had a good experience.

The Department of Health and Social Care told Pulse that priorities for the health service had been set out in full in the planning framework, and that they do not comment on leaks.

However, RCGP chair Professor Victoria Tzortziou Brown said ‘any new access targets must reflect the significant workload pressures and workforce shortages currently facing general practice and we would be concerned if this were not fully taken into account’.

‘GP teams want their patients to be able to access safe, timely and appropriate care and are already working incredibly hard to improve patients’ experience of contacting their surgery,’ she added.

As demand for GP services ‘continues to rocket’, setting another target will not, on its own, make it easier for patients to get the care they need, she said.

‘Practices have made significant changes in recent years, including upgrading telephone systems, expanding online routes and improving care navigation.

‘But these measures can only go so far in an overstretched system and there are simply not enough GPs to meet patients’ needs.

‘GPs want their patients to have a good experience of general practice, but GPs need to be appropriately supported and resourced to deliver that.

‘This means expanding the GP workforce, reducing unnecessary bureaucracy, investing properly in general practice, and ensuring funding follows patients into the community, where the majority of NHS care is delivered.’

Professor Tzortziou Brown also said any approach to improving satisfaction must ‘work for all patients’, including those who may struggle to use digital systems..

According to the latest ONS report, almost half (47.2%) of patients who successfully made contact with their GP practice did so online, up from 38.5% a year ago. A year ago, 45% made successful contact by telephone, which had now shifted to 37.7%.

Last week the BMA’s GP committee voted to immediately enter collective action against this year’s imposed contract given the Government’s ‘insufficient assurances’ regarding their concerns over unlimited access, including via online forms.