REVEALED: Dorset GP's with most and least patients
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Last updated 23rd Mar 2022
The GP practices in Dorset with the most and least patients per doctor have been revealed.
The British Medical Association said large disparities in GP to patient ratios throughout England are "wholly unacceptable" and called on the Government to address the longstanding issues.
NHS Digital figures show 819,567 patients were registered at GP practices in the NHS Dorset CCG area at the end of January – along with the equivalent of 498 full-time GPs.
This means if the patients were equally spread, each GP would be dealing with an average of 1,647 patients – but the figures vary drastically across the 72 practices which were recorded as having patients and any FTE practitioners.
Ammonite Health Partnership has the worst ratio in the area, with 10,544 patients per full-time GP.
This was followed by Shore Medical (6,444) and Royal Manor Health Care (5,306).
A spokesperson for NHS Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group said:“Primary Care is currently under huge pressure, facing increased demand alongside the delivery of the life-saving COVID-19 vaccination programme whilst at the same time experiencing recruitment issues. Despite this, in February primary care consultations increased by 5% and general practice activity across Dorset has returned to above pre-pandemic levels providing a range of face to face and remote consultations to meet patient need.
“Using NHS services wisely can help more people get the right treatment, in the right place, at the right time. If you’re unwell and are unsure about where to go, visit 111.nhs.uk or call 111.”
Patient ratios vary widely across England, from 41,000 patients per GP at a practice in Coventry and Warwickshire, to just 96 at a Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin surgery.
Dr Kieran Sharrock, BMA England GP committee deputy chairman, said: “This data shows worryingly large disparities in GP to patient ratios across the country and it is wholly unacceptable that patients should have to experience such variations in access to care.
“The Government has failed to address the longstanding recruitment and retention issues in general practice and we now have a very unsustainable and unsafe situation where fewer GPs are being tasked with the responsibility of caring for significantly more patients."
Dr Sharrock said the Government has not paid enough attention to the primary care backlog and should provide "urgent and substantial support" to enable high quality care.
Meanwhile, the Dorset practices with the lowest number of patients per GP are Wareham Surgery (697), The Adam Practice (969) and The Prince Of Wales Surgery (1,002).
The Royal College of GPs said that between September 2015 and December 2021 the number of patients per GP increased by 10%, the number of fully qualified, full-time equivalent GPs fell by 5% and the population grew by 4%.
Professor Martin Marshall, chairman of the RCGP, said some regions are affected worse than others as they face greater difficulties recruiting new GPs.
GP-patient ratios are highest in London (1,998 per GP on average) and lowest in the North West (1,601).
Professor Marshall added: "GPs want to be able to consistently give their patients the care they deserve, no matter where they live.
"But the increased workload expected of GPs and their teams while their numbers fail to increase at the necessary pace, is unsustainable."
Along with the hiring of more GPs, he said plans are also needed to keep experienced GPs in the workforce for longer.
The Department of Health and Social Care said there were over 1,600 more FTE doctors in December 2021 than two years previously, with a record-breaking number starting training last year.
A spokeswoman added: “We have invested £520 million to improve access and expand GP capacity during the pandemic."