"RCGP chairman Prof Clare Gerada, said: ‘The NHS is changing, general practice is changing, patients are living longer with long term and multiple conditions, and health inequalities are growing, so we must step up and meet the challenges ahead.
‘This vision outlines ways in which to provide easier access to a more flexible and integrated system of primary care that will benefit our patients immensely. It maps out a way for patients to receive the best possible care in and out of hours from the start to the end of their lives.
‘As GPs change, so must the role of patients and so it is important to promote healthy lifestyles, increase health literacy and encourage self-care as we move forward with limited resources and increasing demand for services.’
She added: ‘Most importantly, none of this vision will become reality if we do not receive fairer investment for general practice. If GPs, who do 90% of NHS work for 9% of the budget, are not properly funded then much of this new vision will not be achievable. {my highlight}
‘Innovation and reform are vital but must be underpinned by investment. The Government must recognise that general practice is the most cost effective way of providing care and act accordingly, by urgently reversing the real terms decline in the amount of money that general practice receives.’"
(from here )
And yes, I have a vested interest - as a professional and as a patient.
From my perspective, I work twice as hard for less money under worse conditions and with less options for my patients , many of which have higher expectations at least partially because politicians pander to the electorate rather than spelling out that a finite pot of money + ageing population + more expensive medicine = more cuts at times of economic hardship.
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Any comments on the state of Primary Care within the NHS as outlined here?
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PacificDogwood · 15/05/2014 21:14
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