Exodus of GPs leaves thousands of poorly Brits struggling to get an appointment

An exodus of senior family doctors means GP numbers are flatlining despite Tory pledges to boost them by thousands.

NHS Digital’s monthly staffing data yesterday revealed there are now almost 2,000 fewer family doctors than in 2015.

The news comes as patient demand is soaring with many struggling to get through to practices on the phone and waiting weeks to be seen.

Prof Martin Marshall, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “While GPs and our teams work harder and harder, the number of fully qualified, full-time equivalent GPs has fallen since the Government’s 2019 manifesto pledge.

“It is a service at breaking point. GPs and our teams are burning out, struggling to manage a workload that is escalating both in terms of volume and complexity.”

NHS Digital’s monthly staffing data yesterday revealed there are now almost 2,000 fewer family doctors than in 2015 (Getty Images)

Pressure to carry out more and more appointments is causing many senior GPs to reduce their working days or retire early.

Latest data on fully qualified full-time-equivalent GP numbers shows 27,556 in England as of September 30. That is down 364 year on year and 1,808 on when records began in September 2015.

But a Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: “There were nearly 2,300 more full-time-equivalent doctors working in general practice in September 2022 compared to the same time in 2019 and a record-breaking number started training as GPs last year.”

Earlier this year it was reported one in four people could be left without a GP within a decade as “unrealistic demands” fuel an exodus of staff, campaigners say.

The Doctors’ Association UK (DAUK) wrote to Health Secretary Therese Coffey demanding urgent action.

Earlier this year it was reported one in four people could be left without a GP within a decade as “unrealistic demands” fuel an exodus of staff, campaigners say (Getty Images)

It warned that a failure to address the concerns of family doctors would cause more to “cut their hours, quit the NHS, or quit the country”.

Without Government intervention and investment, the group said many patients could soon face the same postcode lottery for access to GP services that exists for NHS dentistry.

The letter said: “We are writing to you as a group of GPs, deeply concerned over the future of the profession.

“Without urgent government action, our primary care system will suffer irreversible loss as the risk of harm to both patients and doctors increases.”