DAUK\u2019s Dr Steve Taylor has told national radio listeners that investment in primary and community care would help free up hospital beds and improve NHS efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Taylor, GP spokesperson for the Doctors\u2019 Association UK (DAUK), was speaking on LBC radio following the release of a new internal report into NHS productivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The review revealed that despite a \u00a320bn increase in funding for the service since 2018 and 15 per cent more doctors and nurses, hospitals were 11 per cent less productive than before the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Speaking on the Tom Swarbrick programme, Dr Taylor said the money could have been spent better to provide improved outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s the money in the wrong places,\u201d he said. \u201cFor example, we\u2019ve seen a 41 per cent decline in district nurses, and a decline in GPs by seven per cent, so we\u2019re struggling to get people out of hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve also seen a decline in community beds, so nursing home and residential care beds have gone down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere aren\u2019t enough beds in hospital and then aren\u2019t enough beds in the community to free up hospital beds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere does the blame lie?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a good question and I think ultimately the people at the top of NHS England need to be held to account because I think some of the money is going to the wrong places.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added: \u201cNHS England has been pretty much secondary care focused, which means it\u2019s not focused its energy in unplugging the gaps in the community to allow people to get out of hospital.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Taylor said part of the problem was also a lack of investment in infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAn analogy I\u2019d use is if I have a kitchen providing meals for a restaurant and I decide I\u2019ve got a bigger restaurant I need to cook more meals,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I put more chefs in but don\u2019t add more hobs and ovens then I\u2019m not going to produce any more food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd that\u2019s what\u2019s going on in hospitals. We\u2019ve put in lots more doctors and nurses in hospitals but we\u2019ve not put in enough beds, theatre spaces, those sorts of things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Taylor said a decade of underinvestment in the NHS had also had a huge impact. He added that the only area of the NHS that was more productive post-pandemic was general practice, despite seeing its funding slashed in real terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Taylor, a GP of 30 years based in Manchester, said general practice could be doing even more with increased and targeted primary care funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere the money is going is not necessarily the right areas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFor instance, they put virtual beds in the community, which are really expensive. They cost about \u00a3600 to put someone in a virtual bed, which is actually in their own home with all the tech around them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt the same time, they\u2019ve cut all the community nurses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf we had money put where it was needed, which is in the community sector, employing more district nurses, putting money into general practice, you\u2019re going to get support in the community which unblocks the hospitals and allows them to function.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Taylor is one of four members of DAUK’s GP committee who will be sharing their thoughts on the crisis facing general practice at an online briefing for MPs on Wednesday 19 June.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The briefing, Why Can\u2019t I See My GP? The Great British Paradox<\/a><\/strong>, is based on the book Why Can\u2019t I See My GP?<\/a>, a copy of which we sent to all 650 MPs <\/a>in March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n