TY - JOUR T1 - QOF JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 748 LP - 748 VL - 57 IS - 542 AU - Chris Gunstone Y1 - 2007/09/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/57/542/748.1.abstract N2 - In the June editorial ‘The Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF): what have you done to yourselves?’,1 the authors don't — in my opinion — seem to be reflecting professionalism or general practice as I see it being practised in the UK. They seem to ignore the history of the NHS and where these reforms fit in.First the history — QOF is the son of banding. Government ‘interference’ with health in the UK started, in my memory in the early 1980s, with the introduction of the ‘blacklist’. The government, quite radically, stopped GPs prescribing certain medication — including the idea of stopping doctors prescribing diazepam by its trade name! Uproar ensued — the doctor-patient relationship was threatened. Then came the 1990 contract, which was profoundly shocking. … ER -