GP access and long term conditions

Healthwatch Waltham Forest undertook research on GP access and support for people with long-term conditions. They gathered feedback through the Big Conversation programme and analysed 4,475 comments relating to GP services between 2022 and 2024 to develop a Good Care Framework based on what local people said mattered most. 

The research identified four key characteristics of good care: accessible, competent, person-centred and trustworthy care. People wanted timely access to routine and urgent appointments, flexible booking systems, continuity of care, clear communication, joined-up services and professionals who understood both their conditions and wider personal circumstances. For people with long-term conditions, regular reviews, specialist advice, coordinated care and support to manage their condition independently were seen as particularly important. 

Analysis of GP feedback highlighted ongoing concerns about difficulties accessing appointments, poor telephone responsiveness, complex online systems, prescription errors, delays in diagnosis and testing, weak communication about results and referrals, and a lack of continuity when seeing different clinicians. People also reported the need for better integration between GP practices, hospitals, community services and social prescribing support. 

Healthwatch Waltham Forest recommended improving access to GP appointments, offering longer and more flexible consultations for people with multiple conditions, providing routine check-ups and specialist reviews, improving cooperation between health, social care and community services, strengthening self-management support through services such as helplines and peer groups, and adopting a more holistic approach that treats the person rather than individual conditions in isolation.