The cost of living crisis may be adding significantly to pressure on practices, according to a new survey. Some 73% of GPs reported a “worrying” rise in the number of patients seeking help connected to rising prices, according to the Royal College of GPs survey. This includes patients seeking support with non-medical issues such as…

A new strategy in England could seek a significant reduction in GP referrals – but it will need cooperation from primary care, it has emerged. The proposals are being developed by senior officers at the Royal College of Physicians for NHS England and would see a big increase in the use of “advice and guidance”.…

General practice was an important place for individuals seeking help for domestic abuse and violence during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a new study has found. Researchers, led by Dr Elizabeth Emsley, of Bristol Medical School, sought to understand the patient perspective of seeking and receiving help for domestic abuse and violence (DVA) in…

Relationships and advocacy are at the core of women’s health – but threats to these values and skills could undermine the service practices provide, a new study concludes today. The research, by Oxford University, concludes that care is needed to ensure service configuration changes do not result in clinician deskilling or making services inaccessible for…

Practice staff are deeply concerned about safety – but only relief from pressures will help them improve it, a leading GP has warned following World Patient Safety Day yesterday. The World Health Organization adopted a theme of “engaging patients” for the day, echoing the steps in the UK to introduce a Martha’s Law. The Londonwide…

A survey by a team at the universities of Bath, Sheffield and Leicester, says work stress, high workload and understaffing are the primary factors driving health professionals out of the NHS in the UK. During the summer and autumn of 2021, 1,958 NHS health professionals from across the UK completed an online survey to determine…

A practice has won court backing after removing from its lists a patient who subjected staff to abusive and threatening behaviour. The case was initially brought five years ago under the Equality Act 2010, and later went through two appeals. Ultimately the judge ruled that the unidentified practice had not discriminated against the patient by…