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08
Jun 2021
GPs slam health chiefs over ‘tone deaf’ orders to see patients face-to-face
GPs have attacked health chiefs over ‘tone’deaf’ orders to ensure all patients are still able to access face-to-face appointments, and the BMA’s GP committee has passed a vote of no confidence in NHS bosses, saying medics had been let down by the move.
Plans were recently unveiled to fully embed a ‘total triage’ system, with patients asked to talk to a doctor over the phone or via video call before being permitted a face-to-face appointment.
However, health chiefs U-turned on the move, updating guidance to say all patients had the right to see their GP face-to-face first. The move sparked immediate backlash from the BMA, who said the decision was based on media backlash and not the ‘needs of the profession’
The BMA GP committee’s England chairman Dr Richard Vautrey, said the letter was “the final straw for many hard-working GPs”.
He went on to say “We know that some patients are frustrated at long waits for treatment or being unable to get a face-to-face appointment when they’d prefer one. GP’s everywhere share that frustration. This is not the fault of individual practices or doctors.
“Instead of issuing tone deaf letters, in what seems to be a reaction to media coverage, rather than based on the needs of the profession, NHS England and the Government must shoulder the responsibility and face the reality of years of failing to value, support and invest in general practice to ensure that GPs and their teams have the capacity to meet the growing needs of the population.”
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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
Freephone : 0800 304 7382
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