THE Welsh Government Health Minister, Eluned Morgan, has thanked GPs who have made progress in tackling the “8am bottleneck” – making it easier for people to get appointments.
A Welsh Government spokesperson said that 95% of Welsh practices have said they are now providing a mix of remote, face to face, urgent and pre-bookable appointments and that people can contact their practice throughout the day to make an appointment.
The spokesperson said: “To build on this work, practices will collect and take action on patient feedback to ensure they can continue to improve access for the communities they serve.
“As part of the new contract with GPs that comes into force this month, other practices are working towards implementing changes to make getting an appointment easier.”
Health Minister Eluned Morgan said: “GPs and their staff have worked tirelessly in the face of ongoing pressure, and I thank them for their commitment to improving access.
“Patients should be able to contact their GP practice throughout the day to book an appointment, avoiding the ‘8am bottleneck’ that causes frustration to many.
“The majority of practices have already started doing this and others are working to put new processes in place to achieve this.
“GPs are the first step in someone’s health care journey, and it is vital everyone can be seen, triaged, treated or referred on a more appropriate service as quickly and efficiently as possible. However, we all have a role to play in improving the service, there are around 80,000 missed appointments a month.
“If people don’t re-arrange appointments, they are costing other people the opportunity to see their GP, which can have a knock-on effect on other parts of the NHS.”
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