General Practitioner

Also known as:

Family Doctor
GP

Introduction

General practitioners (GPs) use their medical knowledge to assess, diagnose and treat patients in the local community. Initial training takes five years, followed by a 2 year foundation programme and three years of specialist training for general practice work. Entry to training is very competitive.

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Work Activities

General practitioners (GPs) provide medical advice and treatment to people living in the local area.

During surgery opening times, GPs see patients on a one-to-one basis in most cases. Most patients book an appointment in advance. The patients may be any age and have any condition, illness or injury that needs medical attention.

GPs listen carefully as patients describe their symptoms. They might need to ask some questions to understand what is wrong. They might also examine patients if necessary, which also helps in their diagnosis.

Sometimes GPs have to refer patients to a hospital specialist if they think they need further assessment. In some cases - for example an expectant mother or where the patient needs an operation - they make arrangements for the patient to be admitted to hospital.

Once a diagnosis has been made, GPs may give patients a prescription with instructions on how to take it. They may use a computer to help with both diagnosis and the decision on which medication to prescribe. They may also suggest a follow-up to check on progress. GPs also give advice on health and fitness (eg diet and exercise) in order to prevent problems developing in the future. GPs may sometimes give injections and take blood samples. Some GPs may occasionally perform minor operations in the surgery although in many practices a nurse would carry this out.

Out of surgery times, GPs make phone calls and update the patients' records on the computer. They also keep up to date with current medical developments through emails and the Internet and by attending conferences.

GPs may have to work outwith surgery hours. They are sometimes on an on-call rota, when they may have to visit a patient at their home. In rural areas, this may involve a lot of driving.

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Personal Qualities and Skills

You must be able to listen carefully to patients and skilfully ask the right questions to get all the information you need in a short amount of time.

You will need a broad knowledge of medicine as well as the ability to learn new scientific and technical developments on an ongoing basis. This requires considerable mental stamina.

You also need practical skills and a steady hand in order to examine, assess and possibly perform minor operations on patients.

You use a computer for many purposes: research, as an aid to diagnosis, prescribing appropriate medication, writing reports, and keeping patient records.

If you work in a health centre or group practice, you will need team-working and communication skills to work with the other GPs, nurses and administration staff.

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Pay and Opportunities

The pay rates given below are for general practitioners (GPs) working in the National Health Service (NHS).

Earnings for self-employed general practitioners vary depending on the size of the practice and the services they provide. Broadly, self-employed GPs earn around £90,000 - £100,000 a year.

Employed GPs earn around £53,000 - £80,500 a year. These figures can vary depending on the Primary Care Trust that employs them, and the services they are expected to provide.

Self-employed GPs can choose between two different systems of funding for their practices: the traditional General Medical Services contract or the Personal Medical Services which lets the GP adapt the practice to local needs.

The average income for a full-time self-employed GP in Scotland is £90,000 a year.

GPs work around forty hours a week. Hours are usually divided between morning and afternoon/evening surgery. It is no longer mandatory for doctors to provide consultation outside office hours. However in April 2008 the Scottish Government introduced a scheme of financial incentives for GPs' surgeries to offer extended opening hours. By September 2008 52% of surgeries were participating in this scheme.

In 2008 there were 4,916 general practitioners working in Scotland - an increase of 4.1% on the previous year.

There are GPs in towns and cities throughout the country. At present there is a shortage of vacancies in Scotland for newly qualified doctors.

A small number of GPs work in the armed forces. There may be opportunities to work in other countries, especially in Europe, the USA, Canada and Australia. Some GPs work with voluntary organisations overseas.

Some GPs earn extra income from writing articles or from part-time work, such as providing medical advice to a company.

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Adult Opportunities

It is illegal for any organisation to set age limits for entry to employment, education or training, unless they can show there is a real need to have these limits.

If you do not have the usual academic qualifications needed for a degree in medicine course, you might be able to enter the course through:
• an Access to Medicine course
• one of the six-year 'widening access' courses set up to encourage people from disadvantaged backgrounds. Courses are available at thirteen universities throughout the UK.
• a 'pre-medical' or 'foundation' year, if you do not have science Highers.

Graduates with related degrees can be accepted for medicine degree courses. Some medical schools accept arts or humanities graduates.

Shortened or fast-track medical degrees, usually lasting four years, also exist for graduates. You would usually need a relevant first degree, eg, in a science subject, although some universities accept graduates in any subject.

Within the UK as a whole:

• 80% of GPs are self-employed.
• 2% work part-time.
• 2% have flexible hours.
• 15% of employees work on a temporary basis.

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Further Information

The School of Medicine at Cardiff University produces the 'UKMedSchool Guide' with information on all UK Medical Schools. The guide can be downloaded free from the UCAS website. The table 'Other qualifications' lists the Scottish entry requirements for 2009-2010.

The Taste of Medicine website developed by St.George's University of London, contains relevant interactive games and video profiles.

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