New NHS survey to investigate reasons for 51 million unnecessary GP visits

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A new NHS survey is set to investigate the reasons why people head to the doctor instead of looking after themselves at home.

More than 51 million people per year visit their GP with minor problems which would clear up by themselves – or with a little help from an over-the-counter remedy.

Up to 40,000 GP visits per year are for dandruff, while a further 20,000 go to their local surgery for travel-sickness, and a staggering 5.2 million with blocked noses.

Health chiefs fear these unnecessary GP visits – almost one in five appointments are for very minor problems – are draining resources from caring for older, chronically-ill people, and having a knock-on effect of placing A&E and emergency departments under further pressure.

All kinds of minor illnesses and injuries, from colds to period pains, skin conditions to minor cuts, can be treated at home with advice and medicines from your local pharmacist.

The NHS is surveying patients to find out why they choose the GP surgery or A&E over their pharmacist, ahead of work to encourage more “self-care”.

Dr Chris Duffy, Clinical Chairman, Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “Many patients visit their GP or attend A&E because they are worried about what turn out to be minor illnesses or injuries that they can often manage themselves with a little bit of help and advice. This advice can be obtained from various sources such as the local pharmacist, many GP practice leaflets, NHS Direct on 0845 4647 or via the NHS Choices website (www.nhs.uk). By seeking advice first it can save a patient time waiting in A&E departments or trying to get an appointment with their GP and help people to be more able to care for themselves and their families.”

Dr Paul Stillman, a GP and a member of the National Self Care Forum, said:
“We have a growing older population in England. More people are living longer with complex or long-term health conditions – this is great news for everyone, but it does mean we need to take steps so that we can focus more resources on these potentially vulnerable groups of people.

“For example, it is estimated that last year two million people who didn’t need to, went to an A&E or emergency department. That’s the equivalent cost of 6,500 nurses. In addition we know that 51.4 million GP appointments a year in England and Wales are for minor ailments alone. If we can encourage more people to self-care for common complaints, we can re-focus resources on people who really need them.

“We are not saying that people should not go to see their GP or use their A&E, emergency and 999 services if they believe they are seriously ill. We need to understand how we can encourage them to help themselves for common problems.”

Patients can sometimes waste their own time trying to get a GP appointment for a common complaint, and be disappointed when they are told by the GP that their symptoms will improve by themselves within a couple of days. It is estimated that 5.3 million people a year go to see their GP with a blocked nose; 400,000 with a common cold; 40,000 with dandruff and 20,000 with travel sickness.

Stephanie Varah, Chief Executive of the National Association for Patient Participation, is the patient champion for the national Self Care Forum: “Empowering individuals to access and understand appropriate information that supports shared and informed decision making about treatment, self care and lifestyle choices is key to helping people understand how they can better look after themselves.”

Local NHS teams will be encouraging people in their local communities to complete the survey either online or in hard copy. Responses will help teams shape how they work with their communities to encourage them to self-care as part of the NHS’s Choose Well campaign. The campaign aims to reduce inappropriate attendance at A&E by helping people choose an alternative service – such as a GP or a minor injuries unit – as well as encouraging self care.

The survey can be found at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/N8WQVTV