ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

SCOTLAND'S GPs are threatening to strike in a dispute with the Scottish Government that could cause chaos in surgeries.

- BY VIVIENNE AITKEN

Doctors’ union the BMA says its members are at the end of their tether, with rising workloads and the inability to employ more staff to help.

They have seen their share of the NHS budget fall from 11 per cent to 6.2 per cent since 2008 and claim in real terms, because of inflation, this amounts to a 22.8 per cent cut.

Now they have decided enough is enough and are demanding movement on funding by the summer or they will enter into a formal dispute which could lead to strikes.

Dr Iain Morrison, chair of BMA Scotland's GP Committee, said: “I have written to the Scottish Government and the Cabinet Secretary to put them on formal notice that we are heading towards formal dispute if we don't see urgent action to address the funding imbalance we have at present.

“We need to see definitive action by this summer. To address the historical inflation we are looking at a £290million gap in our funding. That is just shy of approximately one per cent of the Scottish NHS budget so it is not huge money in the scheme of healthcare although it does sound quite a lot.

“Since 2008 our share of the NHS budget has fallen from 11 per cent down to 6.2 per cent and it’s looking like it’s going to fall further in this financial year.

“What that means is we are working harder than ever with less proportionate resources than ever before.

“The workload in general practice is growing year on year with increasing medical complexity with more patients, with more disease, with more treatment options - putting huge pressure on the system.

“We know general practice can operate much better than it is if we had adequate resourcing from government so we share the frustration many patients are currently feeling.