In January 2018 a new GP contract was agreed by the Scottish GP Committee and the Scottish Government. This paves the way for a new approach to primary care across Scotland, and in general this is to be welcomed.
However it has become clear to our committee, our members, and our rural communities that the challenges of providing rural primary care have not been adequately addressed in this contract, and to date we have seen little from our Scottish Government to address these concerns.
We’re not wishing to scaremonger. As GPs we’re used to dealing with uncertainty, and processing large amounts of information. We recognise the importance of considered, credible discussion amidst complex and far-reaching proposals. However the more we learn about the way in which the Scottish Government intends to implement the new contract, the more that we believe that the needs of rural communities really have been undervalued and poorly considered.
This page has been set up to explain our concerns in more detail, highlight key resources, and explain how rural GPs and our communities can engage in the process of convincing our Government that they must #RememberRural when rolling out changes to healthcare provision – and indeed other policies affecting rural public services.