Our plan to deliver 8,000 more GPs
![8000 more GPs](/fileadmin/_processed_/8/8/csm_8000_7cf4ea8ce3.jpg)
We know how important it is that your loved ones can get the care they need, when they need it.
And how devastating it can be when you just can’t get an appointment to see a GP.
But under this shameful Conservative Government, millions of people are waiting weeks to see their GP, suffering for longer while their conditions worsen.
That’s why we have announced our five year plan to give patients in South Suffolk a legal right to see a GP within a week or 24-hours if in urgent need will be in our General Election manifesto.
Last year around 20% appointments that took over two weeks in our area with those taking longer than a month growing by a third or more
The Liberal Democrats have said that under their plans, patients will no longer be left waiting for an appointment and risk their conditions getting worse.
The party will deliver the plan by:
- Increasing the number of full-time equivalent GPs by 8,000, half by boosting recruitment and half from retaining more experienced GPs.
- Freeing up GPs’ time by giving more prescribing rights and public health advisory services to qualified pharmacists, nurse practitioners and paramedics.
- Introducing a universal 24/7 GP booking system.
- Removing top-down bureaucracy to let practices hire the staff they need and invest in training.
Liberal Democrat spokesperson for South Suffolk Tom Bartleet said::
“This Conservative government has driven our area’s local health services into the ground. Thousands of patients in [South Suffolk are facing agonisingly long waits, often in terrible pain whilst waiting to see their GP.
“The Conservative party have proven themselves totally unfit to run our NHS. They have abandoned local health services and it is patients bearing the brunt of their neglect.
“It should not be too much to ask for patients to be able to see their GP when they need to. That is why the Liberal Democrats have committed to a fair deal for this community’s patients and legal right to see a GP within a week.”
Fixing the health and social care crisis is crucial to delivering the fair deal the British people deserve.
Everywhere we go, people tell us it’s the biggest problem they face. The Conservatives have plunged the NHS into crisis, and only our ambitious plans will deliver the change people need.