Associations between practice workforce and costs of practice to the NHSa
| Annual practice costs | Mean cost, £’000 (SD) | Estimated effects of one additional FTE on costs | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GPs, £’000 (95% CI) | Nurses, £’000 (95% CI) | Health professionals, £’000 (95% CI) | Health associate professionals, £’000 (95% CI) | ||
| Total | 7950 (4808) | 362 (326 to 398) | 512 (446 to 579) | 182 (−33 to 396) | 256 (195 to 318) |
| NHS payments to practice | 1265 (805) | 49 (44 to 55) | 86 (75 to 96) | 41 (5 to 77) | 72 (61 to 84) |
| Prescriptions | 1261 (850) | 50 (44 to 56) | 78 (67 to 89) | −8 (−58 to 42) | 41 (31 to 50) |
| ED attendances | 361 (232) | 15 (13 to 17) | 20 (16 to 24) | 9 (−2 to 19) | 13 (10 to 18) |
| Emergency admissions | 1390 (893) | 71 (64 to 78) | 100 (85 to 114) | 46 (4 to 88) | 41 (27 to 54) |
| Elective admissions | 1927 (1263) | 93 (82 to 105) | 128 (108 to 148) | 37 (−22 to 95) | 45 (25 to 66) |
| Outpatient attendances | 1746 (1122) | 85 (76 to 94) | 97 (79 to 115) | 60 (10 to 111) | 36 (18 to 53) |
↵a Full results for generalised linear regression models used to derive the marginal effects of different staff groups are included in Supplementary Appendix S3. Margin plots showing the effects graphically for a range of staffing percentiles are included in Supplementary Appendix S5. The results of sensitivity checks are shown in Supplementary Appendix S6. Full diagnostic indicators for all regression models are in Supplementary Appendix S7. ED = emergency department. FTE = full-time equivalent. SD = standard deviation.