Francesca Rudkin: We need to work hard on incentivising junior doctors into general practice

We know that times are tough for GPs, just trying to get into one in parts of the country is almost impossible.

I've been taken back talking to you over the last few months about some of the wait times that you're experiencing when it comes to getting into your GP or being able to sign up with the GP if you're looking for a doctor if you've moved to a new area.

It is now even more disappointing to learn that some family doctors are cutting services such as childhood immunisations due to chronic staff shortages and underfunding. They call it a crisis.

If you take a look at the number of people turning up at emergency departments and 24-hour care departments it’s hard to disagree. 

The General Practice Owners’ Association undertook a survey, and the results show us that GP services are at a critical crossroads.

So more than half, 53 percent, of essential family doctor clinics have reduced their services, and over a third, 36.5 percent, have completely withdrawn some services altogether.

I'm wondering if this is something you have noticed at your family doctor's clinic? 

185 responses from member GPs across the country show that practices are struggling to find and retain doctors and nurses. They’re showing increasing waiting times for appointments, as we know, feeling that they're compromising patient health and are putting a burden on after-hours and emergency departments.  

Look, it was also good news to hear that the Government is prepared to train 300 GPs, up from 200. Only problem is where do those extra 100 people come from?

General practice isn't exactly selling itself at the moment is it?

These junior doctors aren't coming out of med school going yeah, that's for me! That looks fantastic, that looks like good lifestyle choice! 

How do we encourage junior doctors to jump into the sector to be those hundred extra people that we can train? Look, we know that by 2030, half of the current GPs will no longer be working. We've known this for a really long time. 

So we have to work hard to incentivise junior doctors to come into general practice. And we need to incentivise practices to take them on as well.  

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