All of the following doctors provide routine health care for complex medical needs or multiple healthcare needs for patients of all ages. They assess and treat all common medical conditions and illnesses, and will refer to hospital for urgent and specialist treatment. GPs are generalists and do not specialise in one particular area of medicine. A typical GP appointment lasts for ten minutes, during which time they make decisions based on the presenting symptoms, and the patient’s current and previous medical history. A large proportion of a doctor’s work, can now be done over the telephone, rather than in face to face encounters and the shift to using different media, such as video consultations, is likely to expand in the future.
GP Partners
GP Partners hold the NHS contract and effectively own and run the Practice. They are responsible for decision making and can influence the future direction and ultimate survival of the Practice.
Salaried GPs
Salaried GPs who are employed by the GP Partners have less say about how the Practice is run, but are still very much involved in clinical decision making.
GP Registrars
GP Registrars are experienced doctors who have decided on a career in General Practice. Before they come to the Practice they have worked for several years as hospital doctors and are learning to adapt their medical skills and knowledge to the General Practice environment. These GPs are known as Specialty Trainees (ST1, ST2, or ST3) and are in years 1 to 3 of their GP training. They spend six or twelve months working here at the Practice. As part of their training they have to undergo regular supervision and assessments. More details about their role and training can be found in the ‘Our Practice’ section.