gp – Slugger O'Toole

Beyond a Spin of the Wheel – GPs and mental health care

Soapbox on July 17, 2017, 8:22 pm | Readers 662

The crisis facing GP services in Northern Ireland has been well documented, including in previous posts on Slugger O’Toole. Increasing patient lists, ‘red tape’, underfunding, an ageing workforce and the compounding of health issues in deprived communities due to austerity policies, are only some of the problems faced by the service. The British Medical Association has mooted the unwelcome spectre of GPs walking away from the NHS, while the Royal College of GPs NI, in an open letter, has highlighted …

Dr George O’Neill on the slow death of general practice…

Soapbox on March 13, 2017, 4:25 pm | Readers 1493

The 2004 GP contract was the result of significant problems in English inner cities with recruitment and retention of GPs. The continuity of care the bedrock of general practice was lost when GPs no longer were required with the implementation of the new contract to provide out of hours medical services. As a consequence patient care is now the responsibility of the Trusts for the majority of the time. The loss of continuity of care means the GP is no …

Dominoes, pass the parcel and the impeding collapse of the Northern Ireland GP service….

Brian O'Neill on January 6, 2017, 11:23 am | Readers 852

For years GPs have been warming the government that the service is on the verge of collapse. But as usual in Northern Ireland we govern by inertia or doing bugger all as the man in the street might call it. I
But now it begins. We get to witness the collapse of the GP service in real time. The Portadown case gives us the template of how it will happen.