Chand defends GP pay levels

A DOCTORS’ leader has hit out at critics of the new GP contract, who say it is now too easy for family doctors to earn high salaries through performance-related pay.

Kailash Chand, secretary of West Pennine Local Medical Committee, says Oldham’s GPs are worth every penny they earn, despite national figures which show that some salaries have risen by more than half to £114,000 in three years.

An MPs’ report says the new contract cost £1.8 billion more than planned, after the Department of Health underestimated the cost of providing out-of-hours care, and higher than expected performance pay.

The contract, which was introduced in 2004, has enable family doctors to opt out of providing out-of-hours care in return for a £6,000 cut in salary.

It also means GPs can earn extra money for hitting a range of targets, including patient satisfaction and managing long-term conditions such as diabetes and asthma.

No cap has been placed on the proportion of income GPs can take as profit.

The report, from the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, admits that the contract has increased the number of GPs in the UK and led to some improvements.

But it adds that so it is failing to live up to expectations.

Other staff, including practice nurses, have seen little change in their salary although the proportion of consultations carried out by nurses increased from 21 per cent to 34 per cent between 1995 and 2006.

Defending doctors’ pay, Dr Chand described the yardstick for measuring productivity as crude and based on an out-of-date understanding.

He said it did not reflect changes which meant GPs now dealt with more complex consultations, and targets had intensified their work.

Dr Chand said GPs had taken on extra work since the contract was agreed, practice income had been frozen, and issues such as minimum pay guarantees were already on the negotiating table in a bid to work out a fairer system.

He accused the Department of Health of grossly underestimating the cost of out-of-hours care, and said it had failed to listen to GPs.

Dr Chand said the contract had prompted radical change to ensure everyone got the same high-quality care.

He added: “Quality of life is improving, hospital admissions are reduced and, ultimately, deaths are being prevented.”