IMO calls for ‘major investment’ to expand GP capacity and infrastructure

Major investment in general practice is needed to enable GPs to expand capacity and infrastructure, according to the IMO.

The organisation was responding to figures confirming that almost 6,000 people have contacted the HSE so far this year seeking help in finding a GP. 

The IMO said the State had not invested sufficiently in GP infrastructure to date and recommended that supports must be introduced on two fronts. The first to enable established practices to take on more GPs. The second to support newly qualified GPs with dedicated supports to set up new practices.

Speaking today, Prof Tadhg Crowley, Chair of the GP Committee of the IMO, acknowledged that the State had invested in additional GP training places, but said there were no supports for GPs beyond their training.

“We have a cohort of highly trained professionals and we must ensure they are enabled to meet the needs of patients through pathways to partnerships in existing practices or through targeted supports in establishing new practices. It is hugely difficult for newly-graduated GPs to set up their own practices, which contributes to our significant recruitment and retention problem.”

Prof Crowley said that he was concerned that the numbers of people contacting the HSE did not reflect the true scale of the problem.

“The number of people without a GP around the country is likely to be much higher than 6,000 and the danger is that these patients source healthcare with online providers or other services which may not always be appropriate and do not deliver the continuity of care a GP offers.”

He said that GPs were operating at full capacity and many could not take on new patients. “GPs cannot just take on new patients endlessly. Each doctor must assess their patient base to ensure they can all be treated safely.”