Press release - Ballot result signals new era for general practice, says GP leader
20 June 2003
Family doctors have voted overwhelmingly to accept the new national GP contract. In a ballot of all general practitioners throughout the UK, 79.4% voted “yes” to the question: Do you wish to see the proposed new GMS (General Medical Services) contract implemented?
GMS is the national contract under which the majority of family doctors work. The new contract is to be implemented throughout the UK.
Dr John Chisholm, chairman of the BMA’s General Practitioners Committee, announcing the ballot results, said: “This signals a new era for general practice. The profession has given a clear mandate for change. A large majority of general practitioners - eight out of ten - want the new contract to be introduced. I believe this is the turning point for general practice and that family doctors have chosen the road which will lead them to a better working life and provide their patients with even higher quality care.”
In the ballot, conducted by ERS (Electoral Reform Services) 31,945 votes were recorded - a 70% turnout of the potential total vote of 45,750. Of the returned votes, 25,359 (79.4%) voted “yes” and 6,586 (20.6%) “voted “no”.
This represents more than half (55%) of the total number of GPs and GPs in training in the UK, including those who did not vote.
“While I am delighted by the overwhelmingly supportive vote in favour of the new contract, I am in no way complacent. The negotiations have been difficult and there are GPs who do not have confidence in parts of the new contract. The negotiating team is in no doubt what their concerns are and there is much work to be done during the implementation phase of the contract. This will begin immediately” said Dr Chisholm.
One of the contentious areas in the new contract for GPs has been the allocation formula for distributing resources. An early review of the formula is in hand and preparation for this review will now begin. The formula distributes money to practices on the basis of factors including the weighted needs of patients and relative workload and costs. GPs want to see these factors include additional issues such as the extra costs of running small or split-site surgeries, and the workload involved in seeing patients who do not speak English.
Now that the profession has accepted the contract, those parts of it that do not require primary legislation will come into force almost immediately. These include a pay uplift backdated to April 2003 for GMS doctors averaging 11% in the current financial year and amounting to an average of 26% by year three.
Those aspects requiring primary legislation include enabling Primary Care Organisations (PCOs) to provide GMS services directly. This will allow PCOs to make sure patients have access to services in the evenings and at weekends when GP practices exercise their new right to opt out of responsibility for out-of-hours cover. The switch to PCO responsibility for providing out-of-hours cover takes place by 31 December 2004 at the latest.
Dr Chisholm said: “General practice is at the heart of the health service. However, in recent years the morale of GPs has plummeted as workload reached unsustainable levels. As a result, GPs retired early, left general practice, or chose another career path. This new contract will be a turning point. It allows GPs to control their workload, receive better and fairer pay, and enhances their pensions. It brings record investment to general practice. It allows GPs greater choice as to how they deliver services to patients. Most importantly, its system of rewarding practices for delivering high quality care will be better for patients and will produce improved health outcomes. For all these reasons, I believe general practice will once again be regarded as the NHS’s most important asset.”
Ends
Notes to editors
What's different about this new contract?
- Unlike the current Red Book contract with its open-ended terms, this is a real contract that spells out what GPs are expected to do and pays them for that work. New work means new money.
- It is a practice-based contract – the contract will be between the practice and the Primary Care Organisation, using nationally agreed terms.
- Individual GP lists will cease but patients can ask to see a named doctor.
- Funding is based on the needs of patients, not the number of doctors.
- It is a UK-wide contract with the protection of UK negotiation.
- There is a Gross Investment Guarantee backing the promise of unprecedented investment in general practice.
- For the first time, practices are paid for delivering quality patient care.
- Clinical work is put into one of three service categories: essential, additional or enhanced. Essential services have to be provided by all practices.
- The current GP 24 hour responsibility for patient care will end.
- GPs will have the freedom to staff and structure their practices as they want to.
- A Minimum Practice Income Guarantee (MPIG) backs up the contract and ensures no practice will lose financially. Instead all will gain.