Population Health Sciences

Online consultations can disadvantage some patients and create more work for GP practices

Online GP consultations have unintended consequences that may put some patients at a disadvantage and create additional work for GP practice staff, a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)-funded study at the University of Bristol has shown. The DECODE study, published in the British Journal of General Practice, examined the use of online consultations in primary care to improve how they will be used in the future.

NHS reorganisation and workload pressures causing GP retention crisis

NHS reorganisation, coupled with increased GP workload and reduced time for patient care, are combining to force many doctors to leave general practice early, according to a significant new study published today (Thursday 7 January 2016). The findings, published in the British Journal of General Practice by researchers from the Universities of Bristol, Bath and Staffordshire, also highlight how nearly half (45.5 per cent) of all GPs leaving the profession in England between 2009-14 were under 50.