Editor Sofia Lind reflects on former health secretaries making jabs at GP leaders at the Covid inquiry
In case you missed it, two former health secretaries took a swipe at GP leaders during their Covid inquiry hearings over the past week.
Sajid Javid – now to be addressed Sir Sajid for some reason that eludes me – had some choice words to say about the BMA’s GP Committee acting in a ‘disappointing’ manner during a ‘national crisis’.
But it was Matt Hancock’s suggestion that former BMA GP Committee chair Dr Richard Vautrey had started the face-to-face appointment row which stood out as particularly galling.
In my memory of this not-too-distant past, the row was sparked by a letter to GPs from NHS England’s primary care team ‘reminding’ them to see patients face to face – despite the fact that the very same team had been the ones to advise practices to introduce ‘total triage’.
Mr Hancock refers to the GPC as a ‘particular beast,’ but NHS England sent the letter to GPs at the same time as they sent it to mainstream media as a press release, which seems particularly beastly if anything.
Although, the then-primary care lead Dr Nikki Kanani – herself a GP – did apologise shortly after it was sent the damage was already done, cementing the Daily Mail’s self-righteous stance for the remainder of the pandemic and beyond.
What Mr Hancock knew about these actions in advance I have no idea, but I am quite certain he is aware that he is now trying to rewrite history.
At this point you may be questioning why focus on this issue from the past (not to mention comments by a has-been ex-MP who is trying to erase his patchy Covid past by appearing on jungle-themed reality shows) but I’d argue that the face-to-face row has had a long-lasting effect on general practice and patients alike.
Just this week, an exasperated GP partner sent me clippings from a local newspaper of a vicious reader letter attacking the profession. GPs are ‘only GPs because they could not get anything else’; they are the ‘bottom of the medical pile’ (behind nurses and pharmacists); with a ‘useless stethoscope around their neck’ and ‘an idiotic wiggle-waggle walk’ which ‘a false accent does nowt to change’, the letter said.
‘Not a patient of our practice which saves me the trouble of having him removed’, the GP wrote to me.
This could have been funny if it wasn’t illustrating a wider situation where this is now deemed a publicly acceptable way to speak about GPs – which has been fuelled by anti-GP rhetoric from Government and mainstream media. And sadly, it isn’t just illustrated by verbal abuse but also an increase in physical abuse, as we have repeatedly had to highlight in Pulse.
The choice to blame GPs for the lack of face-to-face interaction during the pandemic was a very effective way for the Government to shift blame onto GPs, distracting from their own failures, but the GP-patient relationship may never recover.
Sofia Lind is editor of Pulse. Find her at [email protected] or on X @sofialind_Pulse
Lest we forget most MP’s and Cabinet ministers are MP’s because they are totally f****ing useless to do anything else.
Although you mention some people, may wonder why you are referring to the past, this article highlights an exceptionally important point and the total ineptitude & capricious nature of NHS England , CCG/ICB leaders backed by uninformed governments over decades that is recurrently and consistently overlooked.
The reference to NHSE ‘‘reminding’ them (GPs) to see patients face to face – despite the fact that the very same team had been the ones to advise practices to introduce ‘total triage’, is absolutely consistent with previous traits completely contradicting , U-Turning and abandoning their previous ill thought out ,reckless and in fact dangerous policy dictates and hence needs to be further examined and investigated. This is another focus area for the BMA to direct its defence of the profession.
For far too long, failing mediocre NHS England ,CCG/ICB managers /leaders and now repeated via PCNs have been able to circumvent common sense, good medical and business practice with illogical ,reckless and mind numbingly incompetent directives.
While the above groups continue to scapegoat GPs, then unless in this instance that the cliché ‘attack is the best line of defence’ is used, GPs will continue to be the ‘sacrificial lambs’ of the NHS.
Most ZGZ po s disappeared during the pandemic; many still persist in hiding behind triage and telephone appointments.
Whilst it’s possible to sympathise with those potentially vulnerable to COVID, particularly older GPs, many were young enough to be at no significant personal risk whatsoever.
The danger wasn’t particularly the GP but gathering people in a full waiting room when they were banned from meeting up in any other space. Evidence of significant risk of patent to patient transmission in primary care shown in different Italian regions responses to COVID. And I hate the phone.
I am a fan now of laggardly behaviour with regards to Govt plans as eventually you go from laggard to innovator with no effort. This was why Tony Blair was unhappy with GP’s ability to ignore his plans for gathering everyones’ personal data in order to sell it.
With reference to the vicious reader letter mentioned above, it is sad that local newspapers have taken to the same rather depressing division tactics used by a lot of the national gutter press. A little bit of common sense and an element of public service could be taken when deciding what to print in letters pages. The author of said letter would seem to be a serial writer with a lot of grudges and it is debatable what printing his opinion would serve him as he would appear to be somewhat vulnerable himself.
https://www.pressreader.com/uk/greenock-telegraph/20221209/281638194242773?srsltid=AfmBOor_JN3PYN546xio0SzKbZhsQBO27TqlpUGMglcZj3yw3QOeeGfl