To ask the Minister of Health to detail the steps he is taking to (i) ensure older people can access GP services in a timely way; and (ii) allay fears that they may not be able to do so.

I recognise the importance of access to GP services for all patients, including older people. GP services have been experiencing sustained, high levels of demand since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Practices have therefore continued to adapt how services are delivered in response to increasing pressures.

In the region of 55% of consultations remain face to face, accommodating those patients less familiar with or without access to alternative technology. However, in response to increasing patient demand GPs are utilising a mixed consultation model with telephone consultations, video and face to face consultations as a means of managing the rising demand on services within the existing workforce while retaining responsiveness to those patients who need the most urgent attention and care.

Additional measures have been put in place to support primary care to adapt flexibly to increasing demand. These include focusing on increasing capacity to meet the demand from patients through, for example, reinforcing the GP workforce and increasing the range of healthcare professionals working in primary care, investment in general practice and the implementation of new and innovative ways of working, including making greater use of technology and telephony.

As part of supporting work in this area, my Department established a GP Access Working Group, which includes GP and service-user representation, to explore issues around accessing services and to oversee work to improve the experience for patients.

It is essential that we continue to use of all the tools at our disposal to ensure that we can help our services to work as effectively as possible to meet the need for access to primary care support and treatment.

It is also worth noting that GPs are independent contractors who provide primary medical services to their registered list of patients under the terms of the General Medical Services Contracts Regulations. As independent contractors and clinical professionals, GPs are responsible for making appropriate decisions about the treatment, care and management of individual patients. This also means that decisions about the day to day running of the surgery, including the use of technology, telephony and the appointment system, are determined locally by the GP practice within the constraints of their available workforce.