GP appointments should be 15 minutes long, says BMA

The BMA has called for GP appointment times in England to increase from 10 minutes long to 15 minutes and for the number of consultations per doctor to be substantially cut to help reduce workload pressure.

The recommendations are outlined in a new report that aims to tackle the “unsustainable” pressure caused by rising demand, falling resources, and staff shortages.1 The BMA said that GPs were currently forced to see up to 60 patients a day in 10 minute appointment slots that were inadequate for the increasingly complex conditions that patients present with.

Additional funding pledged by the government should be used to recruit more GPs and …