Emergency care in general practice

BMJ 1995;310:735 (18 March)

Letters

Emergency care in general practice

Many general practitioners are unable to provide safe emergencycare

EDITOR,--Anthony Avery and Mike Pringle's editorial on emergencycare in general practice is a counsel of perfection divorcedfrom reality.¹ The reality is that, no matter how well theyare trained and equipped, many general practitioners are notable to deliver a safe level of emergency care to their patients.This is particularly true in inner city areas, where the pressureof work in the surgery often precludes routine visiting, letalone the possibility of abandoning overcrowded waiting roomsto attend emergencies. Heavy traffic and one way systems oftencompel general practitioners to perform house visits on foot.The threat of violence in many council estates in inner citieshas led doctors to abandon their black bags, quite apart fromdefibrillators and electrocardiographs, to avoid theft. Thereis an urgent need for a nationwide reactive and effective emergencyservice, staffed . . . [Full text of this article]