The Government has announced plans that will mean patients are receiving care closer to home, so they don’t have to be added to lengthy NHS waiting lists
The plans form part of the expansion of a GP scheme to shift care from hospital to community.
The scheme named “Advice and Guidance” sees GPs working more closely with hospital specialists to access expert advice quickly and speed their patients through the system, so they get care in the right place as soon as possible.
It means patients are being directed to more appropriate care – such as being prescribed medication, accessing blood tests or scans via their GP, or receiving care in a local women’s health hub or community physio service, rather than being put on long NHS waiting lists.
The government has pledged to expand the use of the system, with an ambition to increase diversions from the elective waiting list to up to 2 million by the end of 2025/26 with £80m of investment
The scheme would see for example, patients suffering from something as common as irritable bowel syndrome – which is estimated to affect up to 1 in 5 people – can avoid being added to already long waiting lists, which stand at almost 400,000 for digestive conditions. Instead, after an initial consultation with their family doctor, the GP can seek expert advice and refer the patient directly to dieticians to provide quicker care, closer to home – all without the patient having to set foot inside a hospital.
Health Minister Karin Smyth said:
By caring for patients closer to home, we save time and stop masses of people having to head to hospital for unnecessary appointments in the first place.
We are rewiring the NHS so that we are doing things differently, more efficiently and delivering better outcomes for patients. This scheme is a perfect example of how we are saving patients time and reducing pressure on key NHS services in the process.
It will take time to reverse the damaging neglect the NHS has suffered in recent years, but our Plan for Change is starting to deliver benefits for patients, with waiting lists cut by 219,000 since July, and 1,500 new GPs in post.
