The latest figures have been revealed from GP’s across Berkshire which show the surgeries where patients face the longest waits.
The Government said the new data published by NHS Digital – which gives detailed information on appointments and waiting times for individual GP practices across England – will help patients "make a more informed choice about the practice they choose to visit".
But the move has not been welcomed by everyone, with the Royal College of GPs criticising the lack of context around how different practices operate.
A total of 277,368 appointments took place at GP practices in the former NHS Berkshire West CCG area in October.
At least 58,004 (21%) of these had taken place more than a fortnight after being booked, and of those, 15,801 (6%) saw patients wait longer than 28 days.
Here are five GP’s that have the highest proportion of appointments occurring after a fortnight.
Loddon Vale Practice
45.4% of 8,530 appointments took place more than two weeks after they had been booked in October
Brookside Group Practice
38.7% of 18,840 appointments
Chapel Row Surgery
38.6% of 4,794 appointments
Woosehill Practice
38% of 8,810 appointments
Thatcham Health Centre
37.5% of 10,892 appointments
NHS Digital cautioned that GP workloads can be affected by several factors such as the demographic of patients registered at the practice, how deprived the area is and the number of care homes the practice offers services to.
The new practice-level figures come as part of the Government's "plan for patients", which includes a new ambition for every patient to get an appointment at their GP practice within two weeks.
However, the RCGP said the Government should address the root cause of GP pressures – including recruitment and retention of doctors – "instead of lumbering a struggling service with new expectations".
This week, the Government set out plans to overhaul NHS pension rules in an attempt to retain more senior doctors in the service.
Launching an eight-week consultation, ministers said the proposed changes would also remove barriers to retired clinicians returning to work – including new “flexibilities” to allow retired and partially retired staff to return to work or increase their working hours without having payments to their pension reduced or suspended.
Health Secretary Steve Barclay said the proposed changes "will help open up extra appointments so patients can see their GP and consultants more quickly".
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