90 per cent of GP trainees considering part-time clinical work

A major report from the King’s Fund think-tank has revealed that 90 per cent of GP trainees are considering part-time clinical work.

The report, entitled Understanding pressures in general practice, claimed that the crisis in general practice had been obscured due to a failure by the Department of Health (DoH) and NHS England to collate data.

The news comes after NHS England released its ‘General Practice Forward View’, which committed to ear marking over 10 per cent of the NHS budget into general practice. The King’s Fund report welcomed the proposal but outlined that general practice was suffering an increase in demand and a reduction in funding.

According to a survey of 318 trainees, 89 per cent of respondents were planning to shun a full-time career in general practice.

The report said: “One of the most striking findings from our survey of GP trainees was that only 11 er cent intended to pursue full-time clinical work in general practice five years after qualifying. The key reason cited for not intending to pursue full-time clinical work was the intensity of the working day (22 per cent). This was followed by family commitments (19 per cent), long working hours (17 per cent), volume of administrative work (14 per cent), work-related stress and interest in other work (10 per cent).”

Its analysis found that the number of consultations since 2010/11 had increased by 15 per cent; the number of face-to-face consultations grew by 13 per cent and telephone consultations by 63 per cent.
Over the same period, the GP workforce grew by 4.75 per cent and the practice nurse workforce by 2.85 per cent. Funding for primary care as a share of the NHS overall budget fell every year in our five-year study period, from 8.3 per cent to just over 7.9 per cent.

The report concluded: “The Department of Health and NHS England have failed over a number of years to collect data that would have provided advance warning of the crisis now facing general practice. Action is urgently needed to reverse reductions in funding as a share of the NHS budget and to recruit and retain the workforce needed to meet rising patient demands.”

A DoH spokesperson said: “With an ageing population, we know GPs are seeing more patients with complex health conditions than ever before. That is why we are taking action to double the growth rate in GPs through new incentives for training, recruitment, retention and return to practice.

“NHS England’s GP Forward View, which commits an extra £2.4 billion for general practice by 2020/21, will help to reduce the pressure on GPs and retain a healthy workforce well into the future.”