To think the future for getting doctors appointment is bleak

[ivykaty44]

With Brexit not making it attractive for medics to come to uk and vast numbers of doctors retiring early due to the work. its a scary prospect but we just aren't going to have enough doctors in the UK and this will have a great affect o the normal public and getting gp appointments etc

The whole NHS is struggling with overdemand and undersupply at the moment, and I suspect that’s not going to change anytime soon.

Many people need to change their behaviour though - visit a pharmacist, use online advice, trust their instincts, do more self-care. We’ve been encouraged to become so risk-averse (“you should get that checked out”) and are used to deciding for ourselves whether we need to see a GP so appointments do get taken by people who probably don;t need them.

We’re lucky to have two fabulous GP surgeries round here but ours is rubbish at communicating with patients - no social media, incomprehensible website - and I do feel they could do more to help themselves.

I think you may be right. We may have to look at major restructuring of NHS without the GP system being so important.

Many places work without GPs like we know them and it is probably an unsustainable model going forward.

Whilst Brexit may have aggravated the issue the main problem is lack of long term planning. Drs do not retire unexpectedly- they spend decades getting older. The older population has spent decades getting older - successive governments have not planned and provided routes to education and training to ensure enough new drs are being qualified at the rate needed to meet need.

The whole system needs to change. The NHS was not set up to provide the breadth of services it currently (under)funds for an ever increasing and aging population. All NHS services are drowning in over demand and underfunding, including primary care.