More and more primary care appointments are being seen by non-GPs, latest data show
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What is this?
It’s a map of England split by the 14 NHS England sub-regions.
What does it show?
It highlights the proportion of general practice appointments in October 2018 that were seen by other practice staff members, including practice nurses.
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What does it mean for me?
Some areas are far more reliant than others on their non-GP staff, and practice nurses especially. This is either because of a shortage of GPs or an abundance of practice nurses.
The average percentage for the month was just over 47%, but there are regions where non-GP staff are conducting more appointments than GPs. Yorkshire and the Humber, and Lancashire and South Cumbria score particularly highly here.
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London is the lowest, but traditionally has the fewest problems when it comes to filling vacant GP posts, relative to other areas where GPs may be in short supply.
