The British Medical Association is asking patients and NHS staff to sign the petition backing its Support Your Surgery campaign
“General practice in England has faced an extremely challenging time during the COVID-19 pandemic. Face-to-face contact has been limited to protect patients and reduce the risk of infection. But even after the pandemic, general practice will continue to struggle to meet the needs of patients,” says the BMA.
“With the number of GPs falling (due to lack of recruitment and retention) whilst the population rises, demands on GPs are higher than ever. There are millions of patients whose treatment has been delayed due to the pandemic, more tests to administer and additional bureaucracy. GP workload is becoming unmanageable.
“GPs and their teams cannot meet this challenge without more support. In signing this petition, we are calling on the UK Government to provide the funding and commitment needed to urgently increase the number of GPs, practice nurses and other practice staff and to improve the premises in which they work. This will help GP practices in England to meet the growing needs of people in our communities, providing the care we and our families need.”