by Nadeem Badshah
URGENT action is needed to improve access to GPs in deprived towns and cities with large Asian communities, according to health experts.
Research showed rich and poor people in England receive different standards of care from the NHS, with families living in deprived areas waiting longer to get a doctor’s appointment.
The study by think-tank The Nuffield Trust suggested cities with a higher south Asian population including Birmingham, parts of Yorkshire and Leicester, fared worse than the national average in waiting times.
In Birmingham and Solihull, between 32 per cent and 35 per cent of patients reported waiting more than 15 minutes at the GP surgery, compared to an average of 26 per cent across England. More than 15 per cent of patients reported not being able to get a GP appointment at all, compared to the average of 11 per cent.
In Leicester, 30 per cent of patients reported waiting more than 15 minutes, while nearly a fifth could not get an appointment. The figure rose to 34 per cent of people waiting more than 15 minutes to see their GP in Bradford, Yorkshire, while one in five people were unable to get an appointment.
Professor Mahendra Patel, a professor of pharmacy practise in Yorkshire, said that more focus was needed in certain parts of England due to the higher risk of south Asians getting diabetes.
He told Eastern Eye: “Bradford has some of the most deprived wards in the country. It’s important that areas such as these are given due attention in terms of requirements. Cases of ill health around cardiovascular [disease], diabetes and mental health, these inequalities
are not acceptable.
“There needs to be a bigger focus in supporting patients in getting access efficiently. It is two-three times more in ethnic minority groups compared to the white European population. It’s higher for diabetes.
“It is absolutely imperative that these people are not waiting longer than the national average. It will only add to the disparity and the problems already there.
“It’s a postcode lottery. There is a high prevalence of diseases and having to wait longer. [There needs to be] Direct resources to areas which need it most and looking at the pharmacies’ relationship to use their knowledge where patients cannot access doctors
in the interim period.”
The study also found there was an average of 1,869 patients on GP lists for each doctor in the most wealthy areas in the country, compared to 2,125 in the most deprived. And one in
seven people in the poorest wards was unable to get a GP appointment compared with
one in 10 in the richest areas. People in deprived towns and cities are also less likely than their richer counterparts to have a good experience of visiting their GP and are more likely to visit hospital in an emergency.
Dr Krishna Kasaraneni, from the British Medical Association’s GP committee executive, told Eastern Eye: “People from lower socio-economic backgrounds largely have poorer individual health outcomes compared with the general population, and thus have very specific healthcare needs.
“Therefore, the demand on GP services in these areas is higher and GPs are under greater pressure to provide more services in order to meet the needs of their specific population.
“Without proper commissioning of tailored services – as community diabetes services and specialist services to address alcohol misuse, for example – GP workloads will only increase, and access will become more of a problem for patients.
“Amid such pressures, it is no surprise that deprived areas see some of the highest turnover of staff, only exacerbating the existing workforce crisis. With fewer doctors, GP workloads go up and patients will only find it harder to access care, creating a vicious cycle.”
Nigel Edwards, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust, said the analysis showed there were “concerning discrepancies between the standards of care rich and poor receive from some NHS services”.
“As the NHS gets to work on its longterm plan for the next 10 years, exploring exactly why these differences exist will be key to ensuring the health service meets the needs of people regardless of their income or background,” he said.
NHS England said its “long-term plan will be setting out new action to tackle inequalities including in access to primary care”.
“But with the root cause of ill health lying in factors such as diet, smoking and exercise, income security, housing, air pollution and social connection, more medical treatment isn’t by itself the only answer,” it added.
Kulsuma Aktergetty images