NHS Open All Hours

With the Prime Minister planning for longer opening hours for surgeries, there are concerns over the consequences that will arise from this decision. More than 20,000 extra GPs, nurses and other NHS staff are needed if the Prime Minister wants his plan for longer surgery opening hours to work, Dr Maureen Baker, the head of the Royal College of GPs (RCGP) has warned. GPs needed an extra £1bn of taxpayers' money to recruit sufficient staff to keep practices open seven days a week. The extra demand during the winter months would leave GPs and hospitals struggling to cope and ultimately risking the sustainability of the NHS without the extra funding. There are just over 40,000 GPs currently working in the UK, according to the British Medical Association, a figure which will have to rise by a quarter to meet the demands of the RCGP. 

The government distributed £500m to hospital this winter to handle the extra demand, but this is only a short term fix that some including Dr Baker have criticised. The extra demand is a recurring dilemna that emerges continuously year after year therefore throwing money at it one year will not do anything to address the long term problems. The money should be used to target long term plans and the development  The Prime Minister said he would like GP surgeries to open from 8am until 8pm and at weekends to fit in with the lifestyles of working people. He told Sky News: "Sometimes people using accident and emergency really just need to see a GP. But for hard-working people it is often too difficult because you are at work, you can't get an appointment at the time that fits." With surgery hours better suited to workers, workers will spend less time away from work therefore spending more time working. The accumulation of the reduced days off will improve productivity which in turn can benefit the UKs competitiveness, an area that some feel needs strengthening.