And he’s surprised at the stature of GPs there:
Now the time you wait can vary, depending on the nature of your coverage and your options, but you need a referral from a GP to see a specialist. No exceptions.
As a result, the GP has a lot of standing “” and a far more influential role “” in the British health care system than a GP has in the US system. And therefore, there are more GPs than there are specialists (I think the numbers were something like 60/40 GPs to Consultants) “” which is just the opposite of the US “” where we have 30 GPs for every 70 specialists.
I asked several speakers if giving people direct access to specialists “” as they have in this country “” would make a difference. They all said “hugely.”
Of course, health plans in the US are working away from the PCP-referral model, as the “gatekeeper” concept failed miserably. In fact, Medicare doesn’t require referrals at all.
Related posts:
- A referral to a specialist turns patients into currency
- The Charlie Weis malpractice trial
- ER visits and health care costs rise in Massachusetts due to lack of primary care access
- 9 patients, 2,678 ED visits, $3 million dollars
- Physician tiers and advertising in the NY Times
- Inconvenient truths about our health care system
- Breaking even on 4 visits per day
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Not surprising really. The NHS is a socialized system. That is, a politicized system. Government provides healthcare, government responds to votes.
Far more people need primary care than specialty care. Voters remember how easy it was to get the PAP smear and other primary care that would be affordable to most everyone anyway, if all their money weren’t taxed away by government.
Very few people are affected by the year-long wait for a hip arthroplasty.
Majority rules. Same in Canada. You will usually get primary care, though even that is becoming a problem up north. But deliver a preemie, there’s no beds.
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