Scottish Labour analysis reveals a 15% increase in patients per GP over a decade, coupled with a decline in the number of full-time equivalent GPs. The party calls for government investment in recruitment and retention to address the crisis.
The number of patients per GP in Scotland has increased by 15 percent in just over a decade. Scottish Labour analysis of GP workforce data has shown that there are now 227 more patients per GP than 11 years ago. There are now 1,743 patients per GP compared to 1,515 in 2013. The number of full-time equivalent GPs declined by 222 in the same period. It went down from 3,675 in 2013 to 3,453 this year.
Scottish Labour urged the SNP Government to invest in recruitment and retention to improve the service and save money on locum fees. The party's Health Spokesperson Jackie Baillie said: “When GPs themselves are leaving the profession, it’s no wonder patients are struggling to get appointments. “GPs play an essential part in early interventions, public health and they are the first port of call for the majority of patients. They take pressure off hospitals, so this fall in staffing should alarm everybody. “With patient to doctor ratios spiralling out of control, the SNP are setting up GP practices to fail – they must work with practices to improve morale and working conditions so that more staff don’t burn out. “Investing in recruitment and retention now will not only keep GP numbers up but save the taxpayer expensive locum fees. “The UK Labour government delivered a record £5.2billion of additional funding to Scotland but it’s up to the SNP to ensure it reaches frontline services and primary healthcare.” In 2017 the SNP pledged to deliver 800 more GPs by 2027, but in 2024 the number continued to decrease. The number of GP sessions lost to sickness absence also rose by 15 percent compared to 2022/23 and the number of hours lost to sickness for non-doctor staff also rose by 11 percent over the same period. The number of patients registered with GPs has risen since 2013 from 5,568,304 to 6,017,28
HEALTHCARE SCOTLAND GP SHORTAGE PATIENT RATIO
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