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Tuesday 5 October 2021

Unslashed



Seeing the same GP over several years helps patients live longer and stay out of hospital, study finds

  • Lasting relationships with GPs also slashes risk of heart disease and diabetes
  • Findings come from new study by scientists at the University of Bergen, Norway
  • Patients who had same GP for 15 years or more were 30% less likely to need out-of-hours health services than those who knew theirs for less than a year
  • Long-term patients were also 28% less likely to be admitted to hospital

Leads a chap to wonder about the impact of effectively having no GP here in the UK. Presumably the risks of heart disease and diabetes remain unslashed. 

6 comments:

Sam Vega said...

I've had the same voicemail recording from the health centre for a long time now, and I think it's doing me a power of good.

wiggiatlarge said...

My recent letter from the health minister about what I can and can't do re the virus, being an especially vulnerable patient! suggests for all other matters I should call my GP, 'the NHS is open'
He obviously lives in another universe from the rest of us.

Scrobs. said...

We've just about given up on our doctors' group practice these days. Senora O'Blene has a long-term affliction, and used to have regular consultations with a decent specialist, but that went South years ago, then our doctor did a few, and now it's just down to the nurse, whom we love to bits, but my wife knows much more about it all than she does, so why bother!

DiscoveredJoys said...

At another tangent... it really annoys me how over the counter medicines and proposed diet plans all exhort you to check with your GP to ensure that you are medically fit enough to use their products. We would probably need twice as many GPs to deal with this responsibility tick box - if we all followed the advice.

Nessimmersion said...

But but but, they can't possibly have GPs in Norway because they don't have a Wah!NHS.

Everyone knows that places without a Wah!NHS are knee deep in dead bodies, still waiting for medical care.

A K Haart said...

Sam - probably intended to give a sense of continuity. The time may come when the voicemail is an AI system which actually shows an interest in what you have to say before suggesting paracetamol.

Wiggia - he does live in another universe. Today Mrs H was offered an appointment in January.

Scrobs - we find Dr Google is well informed and easy to contact.

DJ - it would be quite a surprise if the GP was interested.

Nessimmersion - I didn't understand that part either. Maybe they imported a few NHS GPs in order to carry out the survey.