More than a third of GPs in Wales are considering leaving the job in the next five years, a new polls reveals, by Mark Smith [article on Wales online, 15 April 2015]

The BMA says GPs are overworked and ‘intensely frustrated’ that they do not have enough time to spend with their patients

More than a third of GPs in Wales are considering leaving the profession within the next five years, according to a new survey by the British Medical Association.

The new findings from the BMA found that 35% of the 748 Welsh GPs who responded to the survey said they were considering retiring within half a decade.

In addition, 8% said they would consider leaving Wales and working overseas in the next five years, and 4% said they could leave medicine altogether and start a different career.

No More Games campaign
The poll was released as part of the BMA’s No More Games campaign, which calls on politicians of all parties across the UK to have an honest and open public debate about the future of the NHS.

The BMA in Wales, along with the Royal College of GPs and the Wales Deanery, claim a funding boost for general practice is vital if Wales is to meet the changing needs of patients and reduce pressure on the rest of the NHS.

There are fears of a looming recruitment and retention “crisis” in Wales, particularly in rural areas.

But the Welsh Government says it has agreed a new two-year contract with the BMA to cut out more red tape from GPs’ workloads in Wales, freeing up more time for doctors to care for the most vulnerable people with complex care needs.

Number of GPs is higher than a decade ago
There are now more than 2,000 GPs working in the Welsh NHS, an increase of 10.5% since 2004.

RELATED: Wales needs to recruit an extra 95 GPs this year just to reach the UK average, doctors warn

The survey found that 69% of respondents in Wales said workload had the greatest negative impact on their commitment to the job, while 57% said there was an “inappropriate transfer of resources” into general practice.

And almost one in five (18%) GPs in Wales who responded said they were considering switching to part-time.

But almost half (48%) said they would recommend a career in general practice to an undergraduate or doctor in training.

Referring to the UK-wide figures, chairwoman of the BMA’s GP committee Dr Charlotte Jones said: “This poll lays bare the stark reality of the crisis facing the GP workforce.

“It is clear that incredible pressures on GP services are at the heart of this problem, with escalating demand having far outstripped capacity.

‘Overworked and intensely frustrated’
“GPs are overworked and intensely frustrated that they do not have enough time to spend with their patients, especially the increasing numbers of older people with multiple and complex problems who need specialised care.

“Instead GPs are being taken away from treating patients by pointless paperwork or other work that has often been moved without proper resourcing into the community.

“Many GPs are facing burnout from increased stress.”

RELATED: Fewer than half of GP practices are open during ‘core hours’, new report reveals

The poll surveyed more than 15,000 GPs across Britain, with more than 12,000 of the respondents coming from England.

The Welsh Government says it will invest more than £40m to develop primary care services across Wales, moving more care out of hospitals into communities and improving access to preventative care.

‘We want Wales to lead the way in attracting GPs’
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We are working hard with the profession to promote Wales as an attractive place to live and work.

“In this UK-wide survey around half of those who responded were over 50, compared to 41% in Wales, so the results may overstate GPs’ intentions to retire.

“We will publish our new primary care workforce plan later this year, which will include ways of addressing the existing pressures facing GPs, while also investing in the development of the wider primary care workforce.

“It will also put in place the foundations for a more robust approach to workforce planning and ensure young GPs coming into practice in Wales have a wider choice of careers than just the traditional independent contractor model.

“We want Wales to lead the way in attracting a new generation of GPs.”