BMA: 'Pandemic has been most stressful 17 months of GPs lives'

The Chair of the British Medical Association's Northern Ireland GP's Committee is warning doctors are being pushed to their limits, as the pressures of the pandemic mount.

Dr Alan Stout was giving evidence to MLAs at the Health Committee on Thursday.

Due to infection control measures, GP surgeries have been operating a 'telephone-first' triage service for patients.

However, as Dr Stout told members, there are many other demands on doctors.

He said: "Add to this (previous pressures) the Covid-19 restrictions which have rapidly changed the way in which we operate practices, the staffing of Covid centres to ensure we can safely operate a parallel service and also the vaccine programme itself.

"It really is phenomenal that we've managed to deliver all of this, in what has been the most difficult, intensive and stressful 17 months of our professional lives."

And he warned the pressures facing general practice as we begin to emerge from the pandemic are set to worsen.

With inadequate funding models, a depleted workforce and the worst waiting lists in the UK, Dr Stout said tensions will rise on an already stretched service.

He warned: "As well as continuing to provide the services we always have to a rising population, patients are now also presenting with increased numbers of comorbidities and complex needs.

"Our ageing population means more ongoing care and the sheer size of hospital waiting lists means that patients who should be seen in a timely fashion need to keep returning to primary care for treatment while they are waiting."