HALF of GPs plan to retire by age 60: Survey findings

Nearly half of GPs plan to retire by age 60, according to one shock study.

Unions said the number was “disturbing, but not entirely surprising”, due to “heavy” daily workloads.

In a survey of more than 800 primary care physicians in the UK for the Journal of Wrist Physicians, 47% plan to leave the profession by age 60.

One in ten doctors who earn an average of £100,000 a year plan to retire at age 50, and two percent plan to retire before age 50.

Only 14% of GPs said they would like to continue practicing until the end of 60 after the state retirement age.

Burnout and workplace pressure were the most frequently cited reasons for resigning, but retirement issues were also discussed.

One family doctor said the sooner they drop out of family medicine training, the “better” and “they don’t offer anyone a career path”.

With some parts of the country having only one family doctor for every 2,500 patients, there is a huge fallout from the lack of access to primary care doctors.

The UK GP postcode lottery was announced today as official data showed some areas had half as many doctors per patient as others. Analysis by the Nuffield Trust shows that Portsmouth has 39.5 primary care physicians caring for every 100,000 people. People in Thurrock have 40.3 GP per 100,000 people in the area and 41.9 GP per 100,000 people in Hull

NHS data shows there are around 4.5 million doctor appointments patients have not had since the start of the year, around 40,000 a day

Official figures show that only 63% of consultations held in April were held personally in the UK. At the current pace, it will take until September 2023 to reach more than 80 percent of the commitments seen before the pandemic.

The most recent poll was based on responses from 823 British GPs.

A similar survey conducted in 2020 found that 40% of primary care doctors plan to retire earlier, meaning the crisis is getting worse.

NHS England has lost the equivalent of 2,000 full-time primary care physicians since 2015 and currently has an average of 2,200 patients per doctor.

Doctors cited job pressure as the reason for leaving the profession.

The data show that an average of 2,200 patients in the UK struggle to reach the same doctor.

The worst-covered areas, such as Portsmouth, Brighton, Hull and Thurrock, had around 40 GPs for every 100,000 patients, or one GP for every 2,500.

But for years, doctors have also been discussing tax rules on general practitioners’ pensions with the government.

Pulse said its research suggests a greater need for early retirement than previous surveys.

Warrington GP partner Dr. Martin Whitenburgh, who plans to retire between the ages of 50 and 55, told Pulse: “The sooner I get out of this mess the better. I don’t know the job anymore and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who wants to pursue a career in general medicine.

Another family doctor, who did not want to be named, told Pulse that they too would like to retire between the ages of 50 and 55 because they “can’t handle the workload”.

They added: ‘Two of my good friends, both excellent GPs, have left the NHS due to workload and stress. One went to Bupa, the other to an insurance company.

“It’s about politics, it’s not about adequately funding primary health care, it’s about encouraging the public to think that private is the way forward.

‘Conscientious doctors leave because they cannot/cannot treat patients poorly, but the current system does not allow them to do their job well.

“A ten-minute doctor’s appointment is no longer appropriate.”

With less than half (46%) of appointments made in person, Salford had the lowest percentage of patients seen in person. It was followed by Bury (51%), Somerset (53%) and Frimley (53%). Approximately 79% of appointments at Kirklees are in-person

NHS data also showed that less than half of all GP appointments in the past month were made by fully qualified doctors, with patients seeing other staff, including nurses, during other appointments.

The GP Worklife survey found that by 2021, more than half of primary care physicians were working six sessions per week or less, with each session lasting four hours and 10 minutes. About one-fifth of the workforce saw patients in four or fewer sessions, 12.4% worked in five sessions and 27.9% worked in six sessions.

Professor Martin Marshall, Chair of the Royal College of GPs, said: “The number of highly trained and experienced GPs seeking to leave the profession early is alarming, but not entirely surprising given the high workload and pressure on the workforce that physicians face. and our teams are working very little on it. in a daily way.

Efforts are being made to encourage young doctors to choose family medicine practice and these efforts are successful.

‘But if more practitioners leave than they go, we’re going to be in a war that we’re going to lose.

‘We must do the same to make family medicine an attractive and sustainable career for current GPs so they can continue to provide primary care on the NHS and lead the next generation of GPs.

“The government has promised an additional 6,000 GP by 2024, but is not on track to deliver it, but cannot give up.”

Dr. Samira Anane, Human Resources Chair of the BMA’s General Practitioners Committee, said: ‘The BMA analysis showed that despite the average number of patients per doctor, we currently have the equivalent of 1,622 full-time physicians compared to 2015. It’s responsible for about 300 — or 16 percent — increases since then.

“In addition to an unprecedented workload that leads to burnout, complex and punitive retirement tax rules that can leave senior doctors with staggering and unexpected costs if they stay on the job longer are not only exhausting and frustrating family doctors, they are also absurd. He continues to take care of his patients.

“As a result, they are reluctant to vote by reducing working hours or choosing to retire early, and the impact on patients cannot be underestimated.”