Belfast woman rang GP 286 times, Stormont committee told

A woman who rang a GP surgery in west Belfast 286 times before her call was answered was then told to ring back the next day, assembly members have heard.

Sinn Féin's Órlaithí Flynn raised the woman's case at Stormont's health committee on Tuesday.

The meeting was also told frontline workers were leaving because of the abuse they faced on reception.

Dr Laurence Dorman of the Royal College of GPs said one practice had lost six of its seven staff.

The pressures facing GP surgeries during the Covid-19 pandemic, and with the onset of winter, were discussed during the hour-long session.

Ms Flynn said the abuse aimed at some GP staff was "horrible" and hoped only a small minority of people had been responsible.

At the same time, the West Belfast assembly member (MLA) said, there were some genuine complaints about GP services.

She said: "There was one case that I was dealing with and a lady rang her practice 286 times. When she got through after 286 calls, she was then told to ring back in 24 hours.

"I know that's probably one of the cases that's at the real extreme end but I think for people that are having that experience and feeling that disappointment, I think that is where people can lose faith in the system and obviously that's what we want to try and prevent."

Dr Alan Stout, from the British Medical Association, told the committee that it was "not acceptable" and could not be defended.

He added: "That is a reflection of just how difficult the system is at the moment…a reflection of just how great the volume is at the moment. I think that would break every GP's heart hearing stories of that and we do hear stories of that in every single practice. The demand is huge."

Dr Dorman said staff at GP practices were under huge pressure.

He said: "The last time I was here at committee I shared how busy our surgeries were and how demoralized and exhausted our staff were.

"Unfortunately, this is still very much the case and we are genuinely fearful of what the winter period will bring in terms of pressure and how we can continue to provide patient care."

He said that GPs were falsely accused of not working hard enough and staff were bearing the brunt of criticism from some patients.

Dr Dorman said: "Every week, I hear from GPs and practice team members who have broken down and had to take necessary sick-leave because of the stress of their work.

"A local practice to me lost four front-line staff members in one month alone, all citing abuse received at work.

"Another practice I am aware of has experienced six out of seven reception staff handing in their notice, all having had enough of a constant barrage of abuse on the telephone."

He said GP practices were dealing with a "completely unmanageable level of demand".

He said: "Our latest figures, from the 21 October, show that 233,000 patient consultations are happening per week in general practice, 51% of which are face to face."

Dr Dorman said the abuse of GPs and staff was "indefensible".

"We are doing our best but criticism in the press, media and social media sometimes implies we are not working hard enough. This could not be further from the truth."