GPS are facing calls to resume face-to-face appointments amid concerns they are using the pandemic as a ‘stealthy’ way of changing how they deal with patients. Official figures show the number of GP consultations in England fell from 27.1 million in January to 16.4 million during May. The British Medical Association and the Royal College of GPs appear keen to continue with what they call ‘new ways of working’, including working from home, after the pandemic. On June 12, they said that GPs should continue ‘maximising remote consultations’ when the UK’s Covid-19 Response Level drops from its current 3 to 2, signalling the situation is ‘normalising’. Spitalfields Group Practice in East London has continued seeing many patients face-to-face, with a ‘hot room’ for those who might have Covid-19.

Source: Daily Mail July 04, 2020 23:11 UTC