Written question WQ95750
- Asked by
- Paul DaviesConservative
- To be answered by
- Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 6 days
Question
What plans does the Welsh Government have to bring back a family doctor model, in light of the UK Government's announcement on the 20 December 2024?
Answer
Answered by Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
On 31 January I announced the conclusion of negotiations with GPC Wales for 2024-25, which will see £52.1m invested in general practice – the biggest annual investment since the pandemic: Written Statement: General Medical Services Contract Reform for 2024-25 (31 January 2025) | GOV.WALES
Alongside this investment, we have identified a number of ways to support patients, GPs and practice staff, including through a quality improvement project focused on continuity of care. This recognises the importance of continuity of care in good health outcomes. From April 2025, our intention is that GPs in Wales will be supported to measure and evaluate continuity within their practices as part of the Quality Improvement Framework.
We will also work with NHS Wales and the profession to improve compliance with our Access Standards, tackling the 8am bottleneck. We will also improve equity of access via the learning disabilities annual health check and streamline access to services via the NHS App.
Since October 2023, a new Unified Contract has been in place which simplifies what services all GP practices in Wales must provide and how they evidence assurance of delivery. The Unified Contract is helping to reduce bureaucracy and free up more time for GPs to see patients.