Friday 28 March 2008

Productive HealthCare?

The General Practitioner (GP - or Regular Neighborhood Doctor) is the cornerstone of UK health care - the primary route into the health care system for non-emergencies. GPs recently were awarded a new, controversial contract which appears to pay them quite a lot more money for possibly less work.

In productivity terms this seems a little crazy .. but it is difficult to get beyond the rhetoric of the press and get true, unbiased information or opinion.

However a recent report for the National Audit Office gives a useful figure - in terms of measuring value. Evidently the GP system (including the associated nursing and admin staff) costs each UK resident about £120 per year. Productivity may be unknown but value looks pretty good to me ... i pay less than my TV licence!

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