TY - JOUR T1 - COVID-19: a danger and an opportunity for the future of general practice JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract DO - 10.3399/bjgp20X709937 SP - bjgp20X709937 AU - Martin Marshall AU - Amanda Howe AU - Gary Howsam AU - Michael Mulholland AU - Jonathan Leach Y1 - 2020/05/12 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/early/2020/05/11/bjgp20X709937.abstract N2 - For decades there have been calls for general practice to change established ways of working. In response we have seen pockets of innovation from a few, amid a cautious evolutionary process of adaptation from the majority. With good reason, many GPs were attached to their time-honoured working practices. No need was seen by most for radical transformation.Over a few weeks between mid-March and early April 2020, general practice changed utterly, and voluntarily, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the crisis a minority of practices used doctor-led triage as the access point for services; within weeks nearly all were doing so. Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) analysis of general practice appointments data shows that before the crisis >70% of consultations were carried out face-to-face; within weeks the figure was 23%.1 Before the crisis clinical workload had become unsustainable; within weeks year-on-year comparisons showed that the number of consultations carried out by practices had reduced by 24%.1 Before the crisis administrative tasks and regulatory compliance diverted practices from direct patient care; within weeks year-on-year comparisons reported a 30% reduction in time spent on such activities.1The COVID-19 crisis has the potential to change general practice … ER -