GPs in England saw seven million more patients in October and more appointments took place on the same day they were booked compared to the previous month, according to data from NHS Digital.
The data showed 36.1 million appointments were estimated to have happened in October 2022, of which four million were Covid vaccinations delivered by a practice or primary care network.
This compares with 29.2 million appointments in September, of which 859,000 were Covid vaccinations.
According to the data, around 14 million (38.9%) appointments in October took place on the same day they were booked, compared with 12.1 million (41.5%) appointments in September.
The data also showed 89.4% of all appointments were attended in October 2022, compared with 90.2% in September.
And 43.5% of all appointments in October were carried out by a GP, with 23.7% carried out by nurses, compared with 43.7% in September carried out by a GP and 21.6% carried out by nurses.
Alarming reading
Dr Kieran Sharrock, deputy chair of GPC England at the British Medical Association, said today’s figures make for “alarming” reading.
“We have nearly 1,900 fewer full time fully qualified GPs since September 2015, yet the number of face-to-face appointments is going up and many GPs are also continuing to offer remote consultations to make sure patients can still get the care they need, in a way that suits them,” Sharrock said.
“Month on month, GPs and their teams are doing all they can to safely spread the workload, with many offering appointments with other staff, like practice-based paramedics or nurses.
“However, these ways of working do not make up for the shortfall in GPs. Without the workforce and support we need, GPs will forever be caught in a vicious cycle of burnout and exhaustion, sacrificing their own wellbeing, pushing even more to reduce their hours or leave the NHS altogether.”
Sharrock added that while the figures demonstrate how busy practices are due to workload and seasonal vaccinations, there was a limit to what general practice can safely deliver with such a “depleted” workforce.
“We need real solutions to the staffing crisis, and to make general practice a safe place to work so that doctors can continue treating patients,” he continued.
“This includes government addressing long-standing issues that are driving doctors away, such as unsafe and unsustainable workloads and punitive pension taxation rules. Only then will we be able to deliver the care our patients need and deserve.”