Healthcare initiative offers patients the chance to see a GP on the same day, but the chance of actually seeing a doctor is only one in fifteen

A healthcare initiative promises ‘same-day access’ to GPs – even though patients only have a one in 15 chance of actually seeing a doctor.

Health officials said the plans, which affect around 2.8 million north London residents, will increase access to medical professionals and improve care.

Patients who select ‘same-day’ when calling their GP practice will be referred to a new ‘hub’, with artificial intelligence helping to prioritize the most urgent cases.

However, documents produced by the North West London Integrated Care Board show that each hub could be staffed by just one GP, with most of the work done by less qualified members of the team. The briefing package, seen by Pulse magazine, suggests that of the 146 appointments per day, only ten would be staffed by GPs.

The rest will be carried out by pharmacists, experienced nurses and controversial doctor employees who have only two years of medical training.

Officials said patients seeking same-day care may have to travel further to be seen or accept a remote appointment by phone or video (Stock Image)

Officials said patients seeking same-day care may have to travel further to be seen or accept a remote appointment by phone or video.

A letter from medical boards across London, representing the capital’s GPs, has raised patient safety concerns related to the hub programme.

It warns that the model will undermine ‘continuity of care’ and suggests that arrangements where one GP oversees a large number of other staff are ‘unsafe’.

Meanwhile, campaign group Save Our NHS Hammersmith And Fulham said the plans would ‘exclude GPs from almost all provision of ‘same day’ GP care for more than 2 million people’. And Dennis Reed of Silver Voices, a campaign group for the over-60s, said he feared such a move would lead to ‘the GP system being abandoned altogether’.

Dr. Genevieve Small, Harrow GP and medical director of Primary Care NHS North West London, said: ‘Patients consistently tell us that it can be difficult to get a GP appointment. We have developed a plan that will increase same-day access to GPs, community pharmacists and other primary care professionals for patients who need it.

‘This approach will be phased in across North West London from April 2024. It will ensure GPs have more time to proactively care for the patients who need their expertise most, including those with long-term conditions.”

Professor Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, said GPs were open to ways to improve access, which could involve new hubs.

But she added: ‘We are concerned about how this model could impact continuity of care, which research consistently shows is beneficial for both patients and the NHS.’