As many as one third of GP trainees do not plan to be GPs in the NHS, according to a survey published today.

And most trainees say they do not want to take on partnerships – but would prefer to work as salaried doctors or locums.

The findings come from a survey of 178 trainees in the West Midlands region published in BMJ Open.

Senior GPs said they were “incredibly concerning.”

The survey found that about a third of trainees expected to be a GP principal within five years while one third expected to be a salaried or locum GP.

The Warwick University researchers found that experience during training was triggering the high drop-out rates. Trainees reported strong views about work-load pressure and morale within training practices.

Researcher Professor Jeremy Dale said these were “potentially modifiable” factors.

He added: “The negative portrayal of general practice by politicians and the media was experienced as having had a detrimental effect on personal career intentions. Also sociodemographic factors, such as age, gender, and having children, influenced career plans indicating a need for these to be considered within workforce planning.

“A sizeable proportion of individuals did not describe their future career plans, perhaps expressing ambiguity about career direction.”

Dr Richard Vautrey, chair of the British Medical Association’s GP committee, said: “It is hardly surprising that the next generation of GPs are having doubts about their career in the NHS after a decade of underinvestment that has left many local GP services cash strapped and operating from inadequate facilities.

“Constant sniping from politicians, who often expect GPs to deliver more on shrinking budgets, has hardly helped the morale of a workforce at breaking point.”

Royal College of GPs chair Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard said: “This research is confirming findings that have emerged elsewhere and is incredibly concerning – for the future of general practice, the wider NHS, and the care we’re able to deliver to our patients.

“We really do need all the family doctors we can get – thousands more than we currently have, and of all ‘types’ be they partners, salaried or locum GPs – so the prospect of losing new GPs so early in their careers could be disastrous for the NHS.

“Unfortunately, these findings are a clear indication that trainees are being put off from a career in general practice because they are seeing first-hand the intense resource and workload pressures GPs and our teams are facing across the country.”