A council reviewing local GP access for patients has expressed ‘significant concern’ that practices ‘can’t afford to employ GPs’.
Stockton-on-Tees borough council’s review said that general practice in its area ‘remains under significant strain’, due to the ‘twin pressures’ of ‘sustained high-level demand’ and ‘ongoing workforce challenges’, which ‘could get worse’.
The document highlighted that there are ‘a number of GPs seeking work’ or ‘additional work’ within Teesside who practices ‘could not afford to employ due to financial restrictions’.
It comes after a survey of RCGP members found that six out of 10 GPs looking for jobs ‘are struggling to find vacancies’ and the BMA also highlighted unemployment among GP locums, with more than 80% reporting that they ‘cannot find work’.
The council said that whether enough health staff ‘are in place’ to meet patient need is a ‘significant concern’.
The ‘limitations’ of the additional roles reimbursement scheme (ARRS) were also outlined in the report, with the council acknowledging that funding is ‘unable to be spent on core staff and any underspends being lost’ and that this was ‘a particular issue across Teesside’.
The review said: ‘Practices needed more staff but were prohibited from increasing their workforce due to financial restrictions – indeed, there were GPs currently seeking work or additional work within Teesside who practices could not afford to employ.
‘This latter claim was subsequently followed-up, where it was stated (in late November 2023) that Cleveland LMC were aware of 16 GPs who had contacted the LMC in the past month or so looking for work and unable to find any, or were available for additional shifts on top of their regular work. This was a national problem that was impacting in Tees.
‘Ensuring an appropriate staffing resource across the Tees Valley was not aided by trainees preferring to work in larger city areas, nor the case that around 18% of GPs were over the age of 55 – a significant loss of expertise was therefore looming which, without action, would exacerbate existing workforce concerns.’
However, in its recommendations, the council said that the local ICB should ‘continue to support’ and ‘encourage uptake of the ARRS scheme’, particularly among those PCNs which had not accessed the scheme.
North East and North Cumbria ICB declined to comment.
The report also claimed that call handlers ‘did not like having to ask questions’ to patients, and that this was ‘causing problems’ to the retention of reception staff who were ‘seeking less stressful roles outside the sector’.
It added: ‘Given reports that patients often feel uncomfortable in having to discuss their (potentially sensitive) health condition to someone over the phone (albeit that this can aid the individual being directed to the most relevant health professional), health authorities and practices themselves should consider what can be done to relieve this burden on all parties.’
The inclusion of GPs in ARRS had been a ‘red line’ for GPCE in 2024/25 contract negotiations but NHS England declined the request on the basis that GPs are core, rather than additional workforce in practices.
The RCGP has also said it wants ARRS money to be made available to ‘allow practices the flexibility to plan their own staffing requirements’ and ‘to recruit the GPs they need’.
And the Doctors’ Association UK recommended in its election manifesto that the next Government should reallocate ARRS and Pharmacy First money to restore GP core funding.
New health secretary Wes Streeting, who has committed to reviewing ARRS, said earlier this week that it is ‘absurd’ that GPs are struggling to find jobs.
it’s ok. Lord Darzi will soon tell us how to sort this mess
Would a G.P. really have diagnosed a D.V.T. rather than a muscle strain in that now notorious case?
I personally can’t believe that Daktacort is being withdrawn – a further sign that general practice is in its end times..