General practice needs a radical new funding system and improved flexibility in rules around primary care networks, campaigners have said. The Doctors’ Association has set out a series of proposals in a letter to new Health Secretary Therese Coffey, calling for “huge investment” in general practice. The association says that up to 16 million people…

All organisations experience change, whether macroenvironmental or microenvironmental. In fact, change is ever present; it is inevitable. In primary care, there is no escaping change, be it changes to clinical processes, changes to clinical IT systems, changes to the structure of primary care, or changes to regulations. Of course, we have responded to many changes…

Europe is facing a crisis in its health workforce, driven by age and growing burnout rates, according to a major new investigation. Across Europe and Eurasia, 40% of doctors are already over the age of 55, the available data shows, according to the World Health Organization. WHO revealed its findings at its European conference, held…

Practices who choose to close for Monday’s Bank Holiday will have to reschedule booked patients within two weeks, according to official advice. The holiday, for Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, has caused concern among some doctors because of the problems of cancelling clinics at short notice. The Bank Holiday means that schools are closed, causing problems for…

Patient contacts with GP practices have trebled in the last few years – with doctors now having to run unsafe levels of appointments, a major service provider has revealed. The Modality Partnership, which has 49 practice sites with 450,000 patents, said it now receives 4.8 million calls a year. Speaking to The Independent, its leaders…

The new Health Secretary may seek to use performance statistics to reduce waiting times in general practice, it has been reported. Dr Therese Coffey, a scientist with a reputation for data analysis, said she had been studying variations in general practice performance. The move could put her in conflict with GPs who last year threatened…

GP appointment problems took centre stage for the new Government yesterday as the new Health Secretary placed them in her four priorities. New Prime Minister Liz Truss, speaking to the country, also named appointments as a key NHS issue for her, stating: “I will make sure that people can get doctors’ appointments and the NHS…