The Department of Health and Social Care are seeking feedback following the Darzi review of the NHS which reported in September. These submissions inform the 10 Year Health Plan which is due to be written and published in 2025.
A summary of key points we have raised is as follows, GPs and practice staff may wish to inform their own submission with some of these. A longer extract from our response can be read here and the DHSC page for the consultation is here.
- Government needs to show a full understanding of the role of general practice and local practices.
- We need more doctors and nurses in general practice, each full-time-equivalent GP providing care to fewer patients, to be able to provide safe and effective patient care; satisfy patients and optimise health and wellbeing outcomes; and to enable the continued evolution of care and services to tackle the NHS’ challenges and deliver an NHS fit for the future.
- The shift from hospital- to community-based care is critical, but not achievable without significant investment.
- Evidence shows that effective high quality primary care is best delivered by expert generalists working with registered lists in defined geographic communities. The core funding that allows and supports this care delivery at individual and population level must be maintained and, where possible, increased rather than diluted and supplemented with call-centre care.
- Commissioners must be open and transparent with the public about rationing decisions: eg the increase in demand for general practice services, the worsening demand: capacity/ capability gap, and the safety impact of rationing (of all types).
- Everyone must employ robust clinical governance processes in deciding priorities, to address the increase in demand for GP services.