Thame doctors vote against industrial action

DOCTORS at The Rycote Practice in Thame, have voted to remain open to new patients, in a ballot currently circulating among GPS asking whether they would support industrial action.

A survey by the British Medical Association (BMA) last year revealed that the majority of GPs find their workload unsustainable, most surgeries are finding it difficult to recruit staff and that GPs are put off being partners (practice owners) by this workload. Last year NHS England published its strategy to support general practice over the next five years called The General Practice Forward View.

The Local Medical Committees (LMCs) from across the country debated the current pressures at its conference in May this year and proposed the following motion;

“That conference believes that the GP Forward View is failing to deliver the resources necessary to sustain general practice and demands that GPC ballot GPs as to whether they would be prepared to collectively close their lists in response to this crisis.”

As a result the BMA is currently undertaking a ballot asking practices whether GPs in England are willing to collectively close their practice lists or temporarily suspend new registrations.

Andy Jinman, Patient Participation Group Chair at The Rycote Practice, writing in the latest Patient Newsletter, explained why the GPs at the Rycote have made the decision to vote against the motion: “At the Rycote Practice we have very serious concerns about the funding for primary care and doubt whether the current strategy will be successful in averting a crisis. However we have voted NOT to take this action as we believe that it would be to the detriment of the population that we are here to serve. The Rycote Practice remains open to new registrations.”