As a GP, I am delighted to see the end of a 14-year ruthless squeeze of the NHS at the hands of a Tory government that has minimised, deflected and denied any wrongdoing at every stage. As Wes Streeting has rightly said, the NHS is “broken” and we have felt this most strongly at the front door of the NHS – primary care.
Lord Darzi (‘A proper diagnosis’: Prof Lord Darzi, keyhole pioneer asked to unpick NHS, 11 July) has always maintained that primary care requires more investment, and few would contest this. However, many GPs are experiencing a sense of deja vu. Eyes are rolling among the grassroots who are old enough to recall what Lord Darzi did last time: he created expensive polyclinics that were eventually shut down as they were too costly to run. As a city surgeon, with a niche interest in robotic surgery, his insular vision for primary care led to failed policy, particularly in rural general practice.
This is not to discredit him as a person – his achievements are impressive – but this was highly predictable. Primary care policy should be created by experts in primary care.
You do not have to be a rocket scientist to comprehend the issues in the NHS, and if Labour wants to know how to save the NHS from its death throes, it needs to consult frontline GPs who are fighting for its survival. It does not need to create yet more echo chambers and dangerous groupthink. We need less ego and megalomania in NHS leadership and more common sense.
Dr Seema Haider
Wickford, Essex
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