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News

Seven days in medicine: 26 September to 2 October 2018

BMJ 2018; 363 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k4139 (Published 04 October 2018) Cite this as: BMJ 2018;363:k4139

General practice

GP exodus could close hundreds of practices

More than 2.5 million patients in England could lose their GP service to closure within five years unless urgent measures are taken to keep doctors in the profession, the Royal College of General Practitioners warned. It said that “untenable” workload pressures were pushing older GPs to retire and called for urgent initiatives to improve staff retention. It found that 762 UK practices risk closure within five years because they rely on a workforce in which three quarters of GPs are over 55. (Full story doi:10.1136/bmj.k4123)

GPs get indemnity support for extra out-of-hours work

NHS England said that it will fund GPs’ additional indemnity costs covered by the Medical Defence Union for working extra out-of-hours or extended access sessions in the peak winter period. GPs can apply for the winter indemnity scheme for additional sessions agreed with their provider from 1 October 2018 to 31 March 2019. This will be the scheme’s fourth consecutive year but the first time that it has included additional extended access sessions.

Litigation

Medical records were destroyed in infected blood cover-up

The UK government engaged in a cover-up and the NHS altered or destroyed the medical records of some patients who received blood products infected with HIV and hepatitis C in the 1970s and ’80s, the public inquiry into the saga was told in a preliminary hearing. Lawyers representing core participants affected by contaminated blood or blood products …

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