66 Mayo GPs take stand on rural care crisis

SEVENTY-six general practitioners in Mayo have signed a petition calling on Health Minister Leo Varadkar to urgently address the ongoing crisis in rural medical care throughout the county.

They have cited a number of important reports which have been produced since September showing how practices in rural and deprived areas are struggling and how the lack of manpower is deepening.

Dr. Noreen Lineen-Curtis, who is attached to Achill Health Centre, has explained that she and her colleagues want the minister to implement four steps immediately to give a measure of relief to all GPs through the country.

The steps are as follows:

 1. Immediate reversal of the distance coding cut which has been in place since 2010.

2. Guaranteed retention of the current 15 rural practice allowances in Mayo.

3. Improved nursing and secretarial supports for all practices to cope with the ever-increasing workload.

4. Abolition of the ‘red eye’ shift (12 midnight to 8 a.m.), which effectively ties a single-handed practioner into a 24/7/365 obligation, from the current general medical service (GMS) contract.

Added Dr. Lineen-Curtis: 'There are over 20 million visits to general practitioners in Ireland every year.

'Over 90 per cent of these patients are managed in primary care, with high satisfaction rates.

'Many rural localities now face losing their local GP and patients will suffer as a result.

'We are calling on the minister to implement the proposed measures with immediate effect.'