Hundreds of staff and associate specialist doctors should be licensed to work in general practice, helping to solve the shortage of GPs, the General Medical Council said today.
The General Medical Council says the SAS and locally employed workforce is growing six times as fast as the general practice workforce.

In its annual report on the state of medical practice, it calls for “barriers” to SAS doctors working in general practice to be removed. It says many of these doctors come to the UK to work and then leave after short periods – and might stay if offered more opportunities.

GMC Chief Executive Charlie Massey said many wanted better and more flexible career opportunities.

He said: “Lots of these doctors tell us they want better career development and progression, and to have more flexibility in the positions open to them. But there are barriers that hinder their development, and rules that prevent them fulfilling some important roles. They are a fantastic resource of experienced and skilled doctors. If, for example, they could use those skills to complement the existing GP workforce it would begin to address some of the difficulties patients have accessing primary care, without lowering standards.”

Royal College of GPs chair Professor Martin Marshall said it had been investigating how doctors who have not completed GP specialty training might work in general practice.

He said: “We would need to see more detailed proposals from the GMC about how SAS-grade doctors could work in general practice and integrate with existing teams, and the College should be part of discussions around this potential role. What is clear is that SAS-grade doctors, like other members of the wider practice team, must not be seen as a replacement for GPs who are expert medical generalists and have completed their three-year training programme and have been assessed on their specialist clinical and communication skills required to practise independently as a GP in the UK.
Ultimately, expansion of the wider practice team must not be seen in isolation as a solution to the chronic shortage of GPs, especially when it is GPs who supervise their work.”

BMA UK GP committee co-chair Dr Alan Stout said: “Our SAS colleagues already do an incredible job in hospitals every day and have experience across a wide variety of specialisms. This proposal from the GMC will rightly trigger a debate about the feasibility of both working more closely together – and this must be led by the professionals on the ground, whether they are GPs or SAS doctors. Policymakers must not overlook the fact that GPs are specialists in their own right, having undergone rigorous training to practise as community-based expert medical generalists. Ultimately we don’t have enough GPs to meet the needs of our patients, and while short-term solutions are worthy of discussion, we need a long-term and funded workforce plan, action on recruitment and retention of family doctors, and support and resourcing for practices so that working and staying in primary care remains an attractive and sustainable prospect.”