12 July 2002
He made the remarks following the publication of an Audit Commission report this week that concluded the government may be asking too much too soon from general practice.
Overall, the GP vacancy rate is less than 3% (about 900 in England) but in some areas it is one in five. Almost 10,000 GPs (33%) are over 50 but in some primary care trust areas it is nearer 80%.
Although the commission says slightly more GPs are joining the NHS than leaving, it casts doubt on the government's ability to meet its targeted increases in doctor numbers.
This was supported by the Department of Health's own vacancy survey, also published this week. It found that the number of GPs had increased by 170 between September 2001 and March 2002 – a rise of only 1.1% on an annualised basis.
Meanwhile, GP posts vacant for more than three months had increased from 1.7% to 2.8% over the same period.
'The Audit Commission report rightly highlights the pressures GPs and their staff are working under and the dire recruitment and retention problems they face,' Chisholm said.
'Family doctors will empathise with the statement in the report that many practices are struggling to deliver today's agenda.'
The department said the number of GP trainees had increased and would provide the service with the extra doctors it needed.
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