TY - JOUR T1 - Not just another primary care workforce crisis … JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 178 LP - 179 DO - 10.3399/bjgp12X635985 VL - 62 IS - 597 AU - Bill Irish AU - Mark Purvis Y1 - 2012/04/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/62/597/178.abstract N2 - Liberating the NHS: Developing the Healthcare Workforce, describes a vision of a flexible, adaptable workforce, available in the right numbers, with the skills to respond to the changing needs of patients. However, there is compelling evidence to show that our GP workforce is poorly prepared to deliver this vision.Primary care is ‘mission critical’ to the NHS. There is an abundance of research,1 which shows that good primary care reduces emergency and elective admission, referrals, and all cause mortality. It provides preventative care and early detection of serious illness, and is associated with high patient satisfaction, low medication use, and care-related costs.There are 303 million general practice consultations a year in England, which represents 90% of all NHS contact;2 98% of NHS prescriptions are issued from primary care.3 Just a 10% shift of this work to secondary care would overwhelm the entire healthcare system.UK general practice is faced with a rapidly ageing population; for example, the number of those aged over 80 years is expected to double between 2010 and 2030. Older patients in this age group consult more frequently: between 12 and 14 times a year in 2008/2009 compared to between six and seven in 1995.2 (Figure 1).Figure 1 Historical changes in consultation rate by age group for 1995, 2001, and 2008.6 Reproduced with permission fromQResearch, University of Nottingham.Increasing complexity has resulted in longer consultations. Each now takes an average 11.7 minutes in 2006/2007 compared to 8.4 minutes in 1992.4Faced … ER -