GPs may insist on seeing patients in person as part of a protest against a new NHS contract they say will mean a pay cut.
GPs, who earn an average six-figure salary, are plotting the ‘class action’ under new terms which they claim will make their operations financially unviable.
Several options are being considered by their union, the British Medical Association (BMA), one of which will see them refuse to hold online or telephone consultations.
Healthcare campaigners, who have called on GPs to bring face-to-face appointments back as standard after they plummeted during the pandemic, welcomed the move, saying patients will, ironically, receive a better quality of service.
Dennis Reed of Silver Voices said: ‘It seems counter-intuitive to take industrial action that threatens to improve patient services, but here we are.
The BMA will vote on GPs this month on protest actions. If the majority votes in favor, this is expected to happen in early August
GPs, the majority of whom are self-employed and contract with NHS England, are unhappy as they believe the deal currently being offered to them involves a pay cut
“If the paradigm changes so that face-to-face appointments become the default option again, like they used to, then I’m all for it.
‘For the doctors it is a form of work-to-master; they are going to use the most time-consuming way to see patients. But it is only the most time-consuming because it provides better quality of service.
“If that point comes from this, it will be a good outcome.”
He added that patients currently have to ‘run the gauntlet’ when trying to get an appointment with their GP.
“It’s almost impossible,” he said. ‘First you have to explain to the receptionist why you want to go to the doctor, and then more often than not you will be referred to a nurse or pharmacist.
‘Even though the gatekeepers have agreed that you can speak to a doctor, it usually remains a telephone appointment.
“This protest would be a pretty positive change in the way operations work, but of course it only goes back to what happened before the pandemic.”
Damning NHS data recently showed that one in twenty patients have to wait at least four weeks for a GP appointment, with the figure closer to one in ten in some areas.
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GPs, the majority of whom are self-employed and contract with NHS England, are unhappy as they believe the deal currently being offered to them represents a real pay cut.
The BMA will vote on GPs this month on protest actions. If the majority votes in favor, this is expected to take place in early August.
Other proposals from BMA members include switching off GP Connect, a service that allows healthcare professionals to access GP records and medical notes, and ending volunteer work.
Dr. Chandra Kanneganti, chairman of the North Staffordshire Local Medical Committee, said Pulse that union members had devised a ‘menu’ of ways to demonstrate their dissatisfaction.
He said: ‘One of the things that was on the menu was to stop advice and guidance, and to stop things that don’t improve patient care.
‘And there are many options for this, they propose three different menus and we as LMC are happy to advise them.
‘I think people are actually rejuvenated. I think this is something that people will vote for, I can definitely see that.”
In March, the BMA announced that its members ‘overwhelmingly’ wanted to reject government changes to their employment conditions.
It said GPs were feeling ‘frustrated, angry and upset’ and that the contract will see practices receive a ‘basic contract funding increase of well below 1.9 per cent inflation’.
Although GPs work about three days a week and earn an average six-figure salary, they said the deal would mean closing some operations.
Ministers quietly abandoned plans to hire 6,000 more GPs by 2024, a promise made by Boris Johnson at the last election.
A BMA spokesperson said: ‘Under the current NHS contract, practices are required to offer e-consultations and telephone appointments when patients request them.
‘One collective action being investigated by the BMA is that GPs may only offer face-to-face appointments, which could reduce the number of available appointments.
‘As GPs, who often live in the communities we care for, the last thing we want is for patients to have to wait a long time before seeing their GP.
‘But without adequate investments in general practice, the government is well aware that waiting times will only increase. Our goal is to ensure that patients receive timely care, but sufficient resources are crucial for this.”
He added that while discussions are ongoing, nothing is final or “set in stone.”
An NHS England spokesperson said: ‘We will continue to work with GPs, the BMA and other stakeholders to ensure patients receive high quality care.’