The Times - UK (2022-05-28)

the times | Saturday May 28 2022 11

News

an appointment has pushed them to

private GP services. Analysis of GP

opening hours data from the NHS web-

site revealed that 12 per cent of surger-

ies were closed over lunchtime. Some

opened half a day on weekdays.

The analysis is based on 2,115 prac-

tices that have updated their reception

opening times on the site since 2020.

Survey found satisfaction with NHS

GP services was 38 per cent, a 30 per-

centage point decrease on 2019 and the

lowest level of satisfaction recorded

since the survey began in 1983. The

move from in-person appointments

was a particular bone of contention.

Urgent action is needed to tackle

GP crisis, leading article, page 33

Football fans travelling to France for
the Champions League final and
families starting half-term holidays
faced three-hour queues at Dover yes-
terday.
Thousands of Liverpool supporters
descended on the port to board ferries
before tonight’s match against Real
Madrid in Paris. The ferry company
Irish Ferries warned customers to “ex-
pect delays of up to three hours at port
security and check-in”. The port ad-

Football fans and holidaymakers hit by long delays at Dover

vised passengers to “pack adequate

supplies including food and water”.

“Absolute chaos at Dover,” Liam

Devlin, one of the drivers queueing at

the port, tweeted. “Taking around three

hours to get through to the gates to

even board any ferry, double the

amount of time they advise. No organi-

sation whatsoever. Shambles.”

Suleman Qureshi posted: “The

queues at Dover are ridiculous as ex-

pected. The reds have taken over!”

Another Liverpool fan wrote: “Three

hours in a queue at Dover after driving

down on no sleep is comparable to the

pain of childbirth. Glad we’re a day

early.”

P&O Ferries said that traffic on Jubi-

lee Way, a key road into Dover, was “at

a standstill” and there were “also

queues on the A20 on the approach to

Dover”. Traffic was expected to remain

heavy and passengers who missed their

sailings would be allowed to travel on

the next available service.

DFDS, another operator, wrote on

Twitter: “We are aware of our lovely

customers queuing in the port. We’ll

accommodate [them] on the next avail-

able departure.”

Other Liverpool fans chose to fly to

Paris, causing congestion at Liverpool

John Lennon airport. Twenty-four

flights were scheduled to leave for Paris

this week.

Disruption at several airports con-

tinued amid the strain of increased de-

mand. An easyJet IT systems failure on

Thursday led to at least 200 of its flights

being grounded and 20 were cancelled

yesterday morning from Gatwick, Bris-

tol, Newcastle and Edinburgh at a few

hours’ notice. The destinations affected

were Amsterdam, Madrid, Hamburg,

Pisa, Rome and Barcelona.

An easyJet spokesman said: “Cus-

tomers have been provided with

options to rebook or receive a refund.

We are sorry for any inconvenience.”

The RAC warned of motorway con-

gestion. A spokesman said: “Major

routes to holiday destinations will start

to clog up. Drivers can beat the worst of

the queues by planning their trips care-

fully. An early start is always best or,

failing that, driving at dusk.”

Charlie Parker

The number of people turning to
private GP services has soared in the
past two years as patients have strug-
gled to get an appointment.
Polling for The Times suggests that
1.6 million have used a paid-for GP
amid the lowest levels of satisfaction
with NHS family doctors, growing
numbers of whom are retiring or work-
ing part-time. Meanwhile, almost half
of GPs have said they would consider
private work for an online service.
YouGov found that 7 per cent of
people had consulted an online or in-
person private GP service since 2020.
While 4 per cent were previous users, 3
per cent were new customers.
Applied to the UK adult population,
this would mean 1.6 million people had
used a private GP for the first time in
the past two years, with 3.7 million turn-
ing to them overall in that period.
Private work can be well paid. A GP
picking up two full days per week with
the virtual GP Livi, which promises

“flexible hours and less admin” could
expect £50,000 a year.
Another job advert for an unnamed
online GP service offers between £
and £90 per hour, with a minimum re-
quirement of four hours per week.
Salaries for NHS GPs range from
roughly £62,000 to £94,000, meaning
one working a three-day week could
expect to earn £37,000 to £56,000. GP
partners will earn more. Growing num-
bers of family doctors are deciding to
work part-time. At present 58.4 per cent
work three days a week or less, com-
pared with 31.4 per cent in 2010.
GP leaders say going part-time is of-
ten a decision taken to prevent burnout.
About a third of GPs say they are likely
to quit direct patient care within five
years. A survey of GPs by the magazine
Pulse recently found that 1.3 per cent
already worked for an online private
GP service part-time, and 0.4 per cent
full-time. A further 47 per cent said they
might do so.
There are 70,595 doctors on the GP
register and so this equates to about
1,200 already working as private online
GPs. Doctors have no obligation to
work for the NHS after training.
Many patients say difficulty making

Precious health

Private healthcare

expenditure in UK

2000 2005 2010 2015 2020

n e^40

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

£bn

Source: ONS

GPs have been told they must offer

appointments from 9am to 5pm on Sat-

urdays and on weekday evenings from

October as part of their NHS contract.

These may not be at a patient’s own sur-

gery but would be in the local area.

Providers of independent GP ser-

vices report significant increases in

demand. Spire healthcare said there

were almost 23,000 appointments with

its GPs, almost twice as many as in

2020. Others reported increases of 30
      to 76 per cent in recent months.
      An NHS report on primary care this
      week concluded that without urgent
      action the system would become un-
      sustainable.
      Last year the British Social Attitudes

Fed-up patients turn to private GPs

Goodbye

NHS, hello

satisfaction,

say medics

Case studies

A

fter nearly two

decades working

in the NHS, Dr

Chris Rennie

and his wife

Emily set up a private GP

practice in January

(Eleanor Hayward and Kat

Lay write).

The surgery in the

market town of Romsey,

Hampshire, has been

flooded with patients

who are desperate to see a

GP but face long waits on

the NHS.

Rennie, 40, said: “The

current climate in the NHS

means patients are

sometimes finding it

impossible to see their GP,

they spend hours on the

phone just trying to get an

appointment.

“We wanted to offer

quick appointments that

patients can access on the

same day, and face-to-face

is our default.” The surgery,

Romsey Medical Practice,

employs three GPs and

appointments last 30

minutes as standard and

cost £130.

Rennie said: “The

average appointment time

for NHS GPs is seven to ten

minutes. It is not enough

time to do a thorough

examination.

“We’re seeing a lot of

patients who have felt

dismissed by NHS services.

They have been to their GP

and just been thrown a

prescription without feeling

like they’ve been listened

to.” Before going private

Rennie worked as an

orthopaedic surgeon and

his wife was a consultant

nurse in the NHS.

“Demand for

private GPs is

growing, and a lot

of doctors say

that being able to

offer longer

appointments in

private practice has

reignited their love

of medicine. They

are able to get to

grips with patients.”

A

ndrew Leslie, 70,

has always relied

on his NHS GP. He

works in aviation and is a

keen walker, but knee

painwas affecting what he

could do. “I tried to book

an appointment with my

NHS GP to get it

checked out,” he said.

“However, there were no

available slots at my

usual local surgery for a

month. I decided to book an

appointment privately at

Spire Gatwick Park

hospital.” He said he was

seen by Dr Jatindar

Thompson within 24 hours.

“She was very attentive

and my appointment was 30

minutes long, at the end of

which she had written my

referral letter and a letter to

my GP so I could book an

appointment with a knee

specialist straight away,” he

said. “I am now booked in

to see them next week. In

future if I have an urgent

issue I would definitely

consider going privately.”

BEN STEVENS FOR THE TIMES

Doctor on the line

Livi £39. Online GP

appointments via an app.

Includes prescriptions, sick

notes and referrals.

SameDayDoctor £120 for

30-minute face-to-face

appointment; £70 for

remote consultation..

Three clinics in London

and one in Manchester.

DocTap From £34 for

appointments, face to face

or over the phone.

Boots Online Doctor From

£15 per consultation.

Provide prescriptions for

45 medical conditions

including sexual health,

hair loss, weight loss and

family planning.

Babylon £49 per GP

consultation via an app.

Offers same-day

appointments.

Bupa online GP Video and

telephone consultations

with a GP cost £49 for

15 minutes and £89 for

30 minutes.

AXA Doctor at Hand App

offers 20-minute remote

GP appointments by

phone or video, and

face-to-face appointments

at weekends and in

evenings.

Kat Lay Health Editor
Eleanor Hayward Health Correspondent
Anna Lombardi Data Journalist
Ademola Bello

w k p c a N c “ a

Emily and Chris Rennie see disgruntled NHS patients at their private clinic. Below: Andrew Leslie