Monitor is conducting a review of general practice services in England to determine if commissioning and provision of GP services is operating in the best interests of patients. As part of this review, Monitor invited comments on patients' ability to access and switch GP services, providers' ability to develop new services and locations, and new models of primary care. Monitor has received written submissions, conducted stakeholder interviews and events, and will publish a statement on what they have heard and any next steps. They are interested in hearing from patients on topics such as the importance of seeing the same GP each time, ability to access a GP in a reasonable time frame, ability to see a GP or register at a convenient location, and ability to switch GP or practice

1. Call for evidence on the general
practice services sector in
England
Paul Dinkin
17 September 2013

2. Monitor’s primary duty is to protect and promote
the interests of patients
Supporting
good
governance
Choice and
competition
Enabling
integrated
care
Ensuring
continuity of
services
Monitor protects and promotes interests of people who use
health care services through:
Pricing NHS
services
(working with
NHS England)
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3. GP sector: key facts and figures
General practice is the first point of contact for the
majority of patients
• Around 8,100 GP practices in England
• Around 310 million consultations per year or 6
million per week
• National spend of around £7 billion per
year, split about 60:40 between practice
expenses and GP pay
• Investment in services and average GP
income doubled from 2002/03 to 2005/06 after
introduction of new GP contract, but have
declined steadily since, with real-term
reductions of 3 per cent in expenditure and 12
per cent in average GP pay since 2006/07
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General practice also has a significant impact on
other parts of the health and social care system
• Directly influences levels and patterns of
expenditure on hospital referrals (£8 billion) and
prescribing (£8 billion)
• GP access/quality also affect emergency
admissions and urgent care costs
• Every GP practice is now a member of a clinical
commissioning group and thus increasingly
involved in commissioning both primary and
secondary care

4. We invited comments on three sets of issues
We invited stakeholders to comment on issues relating to:
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1. Patients' ability to access GP services….including their ability to switch individual GPs or GP practices
if they want to
2. The ability for new or existing providers of GP services to develop the scope of their offer to the
NHS….including developing new services, operating in new locations, or expanding their staff or premises
3. New models of primary care that local health communities are planning or considering.…and the
potential barriers to these being implemented
We announced a call for evidence on 1 July 2013 to determine “the extent to which commissioning and
provision of GP services is operating in the best interests of patients”.

5. We are about half way through our work
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1. Receive written submissions and conduct desk-
based research
2. Conduct stakeholder interviews and engagement
events
3. Prepare publication setting out what
we have heard and any next steps
July 2013
Publication of call for
evidence
9 December 2013
Publication of issues
statement
September 2013

6. Questions for patients
Questions about which we are interested in hearing from patients include:
1. How important is it to patients to see the same GP each time?
2. Are patients able to access a GP or practice nurse in a reasonable amount of time
when you need to?
3. Are patients able to see a GP or practice nurse or register at a GP surgery in a place
which is convenient for you?
4. Are patients able to switch GP or GP practice when you want to?
5. Do patients feel that their GP and practice are responsive to their specific needs?
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7. We are very happy to meet with all interested
stakeholders
Find us at: http://www.monitor.gov.uk/gpservices
E-mail us at: gpservices@monitor.gov.uk
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