So we can all sleep more easily in our beds tonight. After all, the BMA’s GP committee has had ‘discussions’ with the DHSC and NHSE/I. And these bodies are going to respond this week.
With what? With proposals. What sort of proposals? Firm ones. For what? A package. A package of what? A package of support. Support for who? For general practice, of course.
OK, so we have firm proposals for a package of support for general practice. If that sounds like vague, arms-length, empty-promise waffle, that’s because it is.
But there’s more. Apparently, these firm proposals for a package of support for general practice will tackle, ‘Abuse/aggression, low morale and an unmanageable workload’. When? ‘Quickly’.
So, just to clarify. It would appear that the media’s and public’s negative attitude to GPs, our proportionate reactive depression, and our long term and hitherto insoluble, crucifying workload issues are going to be solved, this week, with a click of some ministerial fingers.
Well, that’s great. It just seems strange that such decisive and effective action can come from a department which currently can’t actually decide whether the appropriate vision for general practice is their original digital version or the current media-and-public pandering face-to-face one.
What it does seem certain of is that patients should have a relationship with GPs that ‘goes beyond picking up the pieces when things go wrong’. Which is another vague statement, but one which certainly doesn’t sound positive about, or supportive of, GPs. And which therefore gives me no confidence that the firm proposals for a package in favour of general practice will be anything other than more vacuous bullshit.
Empty gestures, the winter from hell and the ongoing campaign of GP abuse means nightmarish nights necessitating the self-administration of Z drugs. And that’s the only reason we can all sleep more easily in our beds tonight.
Dr Tony Copperfield is a GP in Essex. Read more of Copperfield’s blogs at http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/views/copperfield
READERS' COMMENTS [3]
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In the words of Greta Thunberg………Its all Blah Blah Blah Blah Blah
Excellent. I like to put candy floss, high heels, and tweets on my waffles. Inert regurgitated thank yous, with sprinklings of sweet nothings and fresh malice, manipulative tasks and schemes and dash of hate. The waffles are buy one get one free at the moment, with a competition on the back to receive more lies and scrutiny. Whatever is entering this GP gutter of medicine, is nicely making it’s way around the entire system, to the excitement and salivating joy of we know who. *I’d like them named and investigated. That orchestrated system and businesses, fragmenting, polarising and dividing care to their future benefit. This is becoming a very sad game of you versus them, and you versus the patient. This is not an atmosphere of wellness and care, but irreversible noxious stupidity and professional upset and anger. How clumsy.