Sir – You report (May 21) that surgeries are struggling to retain GPs. There are things patients can do to help.
For example, if you don’t already, can you limit your sitting and sleeping to just 23.5 hours a day? There’s an excellent short video available on YouTube which explains the benefits.
For a minor ailment, treat it yourself, or ask a pharmacist for advice, or see the practice’s nurse instead of your GP.
If you have a symptom you’re really worried about, explain it in the first of your 10 minutes, not the last.
Join your surgery’s Patient Participation Group. You can take part by email or in occasional meetings, and help your GPs to use their time more effectively.
It doesn’t help that the name “Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group” is so off-putting. It’s a surprisingly small office in Cowley. It manages the £800 million-a-year NHS budget for Oxfordshire’s hospitals, mental health services, and GPs. It is starting to work better with the county council’s health and wellbeing board. Meetings of OCCG’s governing body are public, including the latest, on May 28, in Henley.
Nicholas Lawrence
Chairman, St Clements Surgery Patient Participation Group
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