Harris to experience GP daily working life in surgery visit

Speaking to the <strong><em>Medical Independent</em></strong> (<strong><em>MI</em></strong>), Dr Duffy said that Minister Harris would hopefully visit in the near future.

Dr Duffy invited the Minister to spend time at her GP surgery to see what really happens in general practice following his address at the IMO AGM in Killarney recently.

“You can’t know what GPs need unless you walk in our shoes,” Dr Duffy tweeted.

In a later update, she posted on Twitter that Minister Harris had accepted her invitation.

“He will see the extent of what we all do – full waiting rooms, overbooked appointment lists, piles of blood results and hospital reports to be read and managed daily, home visits, palliative care, telephone consultations and more,” she stated.

Dr Duffy has campaigned strongly on social media in highlighting the plight of general practice, and like all other GPs is seeking the immediate reversal of FEMPI fee cuts.

She believes that the GMS pays for a level of care from the 1970s, when the GMS contract was introduced, but that it expects a level of care beyond 2018.

“It’s presumed we will have a diagnosis made and full workup done before referring patients to hospital and we are expected to provide unfunded, unsupported chronic care,” Dr Duffy said.

Talks between the IMO and Department of Health and HSE officials on a new GP contract are to resume shortly.