P-04-600
Petition to save general practice – Wales
Petition Wording
Despite carrying out 90% of all NHS patient contacts, general
practice only receives 8.39% of the NHS budget in the UK — an
historic low. By 2017, this is projected to plunge to just
7.29%
As a result, general practice is facing a growing
crisis.
Due to the sheer volume of GP workloads, in this year alone,
patients will have to wait longer than a week to see their GP on at
least 27m occasions.
And, according to a poll carried out in March, more than three
fifths of the public now believe that the number of patient
consultations carried out by GPs — up to 60 per day —
is threatening the level of patient care.
To protect high quality services for all patients, I call on the
First Minister to increase the share of the NHS budget spent on
general practice in Wales to 11% by 2017.
This shift in funding would enable general practice to deliver:
Shorter waiting times for appointments and more flexible opening
hours
Longer consultations, especially for people with long term
conditions.
More opportunity for patients to see a GP who knows
them
Better care co-ordination and planning, especially for the elderly
and those with complex needs
Positive benefits for the NHS as a whole, reducing pressure on
hospitals
GP surgeries sit at the heart of local communities. I demand that
the Welsh Government acts now to ensure practices have the
resources they need to continue to provide the high quality care
patients deserve.
Petitioner:
Royal College of General Practitioners.
Lead petitioner:
Eurwen Petitti
First Consideration:
7 October 2014
Signatures:15,000
paper signatures and over 500 electronic signatures collected on an
alternative e-petition website.