Will the Minister provide an update on changing GP booking systems in Carmarthen East and Dinefwr to ensure that patients no longer have to call at 8am to book a same-day appointment?
In December 2021, I announced changes to improve how patients are able to access GP services via a new GMS access commitment which came into effect in April 2022. This includes a requirement for practices to enable patients to be able to contact the surgery throughout the day to book appointments ending the ‘8 am bottleneck’ that is a frustration to many patients.
GP practices are required to demonstrate achievement by March 2023, and patient experiences and satisfaction will be monitored so that practices can understand and continue to improve to meet the needs of their patients.
Where clinically appropriate, patients may be signposted to another service with the reasons for this clearly explained to them.
This approach allows patients to have their clinical needs met from first contact with their GP practice and prevents patients needing to contact their practice multiple times for an appointment.