Department of Health and Social Care written question – answered at on 11 December 2018.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many GP vacancies there are in (a) Witham constituency and (b) Essex.
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to support the recruitment and retention of GPs in (a) Witham constituency and (b) Essex.
The number of general practitioner (GP) vacancies in Witham constituency and Essex is not collected or held centrally. This data is only published at a national level.
Mid Essex Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), has advised that it recognises that GP availability is challenging and it has therefore funded recruitment of other clinical roles in primary care, such as paramedics, to support practices in Witham and elsewhere.
Getting the skills mix right in general practice is critical in addressing workload pressures as well as in delivering appropriate patient care. This will mean bigger teams of staff, providing a wider range of care options for patients and freeing up more time for GPs to focus on those with more complex needs. The CCG has advised that it is working with its member practices, including those in Witham, to reflect this national priority. Practices have the discretion within their contracts to decide the staff skill mix required to meet their patient populations’ needs.
The CCG and colleagues across the Mid and South Essex Sustainability and Transformation Partnership have advised they are also focusing on European Union and international GP recruitment and are supporting GPs in accessing the GP retention scheme. They have also advised that they are supporting the development of the School of Medicine at Anglia Ruskin University and are working in partnership with the Essex Primary Care Inter-professional Centre around a localised clinical recruitment service called Essex Primary Care Careers.
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