There is a gap between what people want from the NHS and what it can deliver – particularly with meeting demand for preventative healthcare, according to a prominant GP.
Dr Anjali Gopinath also highlighted that the service was struggling to meet the widening expectations of different generations and within a finite budget.
Speaking on a Santé Group webinar, Dr Gopinath maintained that a different generation of patients had emerged which had a different perception of what healthcare was supposed to be.
And thsi was epitomised by the desire for more preventative healthcare options.
“This is a positive thing because there are a lot more people who are interested in preventing disease and getting themselves into a healthier state versus dealing with being sick with whatever conditions which could have been preventable previously,” Gopinath said.
“So in some ways it’s good, but it’s difficult because the capacity to deal with that just doesn’t exist in the NHS even though we want to head in that direction, it does need a lot more resources, with services put in place to facilitate that,” Gopinath continued.
“To me it seems that there is a bit of a gap between maybe what people want and what they expect from healthcare versus what the NHS can necessarily deliver at this point in time.”
GPs are not gatekeepers
Addressing a further misconception, Gopinath added that patients also had a perception of GPs gatekeeping and deciding whether they got to see a specialist or the treatment they need.
“Of course that’s not actually true,” Gopinath continued.
“GPs don’t gatekeep anything – they’re just trying their best in making sure that they are getting directed to the best care.”
Gopinath further noted there was also a perception that all care should be unlimited.
“It isn’t because there is a finite capacity in the NHS which has to be shared across everyone,” she continued.
“This means regardless of what everyone might think, it’s a limited capacity and resources that are being shared across everyone, versus what people feel they should be able to access and be there when they need it which practically becomes difficult.”
