A practice in Somerset has become the first in the country to adopt a new employee ownership system circumventing difficulties in recruiting GP partners. All employees of the Minehead Medical Centre now hold single shares in the business in an ownership model described as “John Lewis style”. The partners in the practice decided to convert…

GPs have moved closer to industrial action after those in partnership suffered a double financial blow in last week’s pay awards. The British Medical Association rejected the pay award and announced “discussions” around the next steps – including industrial or collective action. This summer’s British Medical Association conference called on practices to withdraw from primary…

Practices have suffered a double blow in the latest NHS pay awards, GP leaders have warned. Most NHS staff, including practice nurses and salaried GPs, have been awarded pay increases of 4.5%, deals which their unions say are inadequate. But GP partners have been told to stick to their contractually planned increases in funding, including…

Patient satisfaction with GP services has slumped – with problems getting appointments affecting almost half of all patients, according to the latest findings of an annual survey. GP leaders blamed the pressure on services and shortages of doctors. In the survey 72.4% of patients reported a good overall experience of their practice, a reduction of…

Plans for a widespread COVID and flu vaccination campaign this autumn have been announced “late”, threatening to disappoint many patients, the British Medical Association has warned. The government has announced that all over 50s will be able to get a free COVID booster and flu vaccine this winter in England. However, access to flu vaccine…

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General practice has been the biggest growth area in the struggling UK economy, according to new data. A 15% increase in appointments in May was highlighted in the latest economic analysis from the Office for National Statistics. The big increase in primary care activity led to a 2.5% increase in “human health activities,” making the…