Rethinking access to general practice: it’s not all about supply

The current government has tried to improve access via a mix of routes, including: • increasing the number and range of health professionals working in general practice (giving patients access to professionals with different skillsets) • requiring practices to work together to extend their opening times • supporting practices to improve their telephony and triage systems. [...] How can the candidacy framework help us understand access to general practice? One way of thinking about access in a more rounded way is by considering how patients, professionals, the systems they work in and broader structural factors interact to shape people’s access to care. [...] Although the framework was originally developed to understand access to health care by vulnerable groups, it offers a helpful way of thinking about some major influences on people’s access to general practice too – as well as how ease of access can vary between patient groups and GP practices. [...] The candidacy framework draws attention to how access to general practice is not simply a matter of supply or speed of appointments. [...] Table 2: Categorisation of current and past approaches to improving access to general practice Category of approach Examples Appointment innovations • Using triage to optimise appointment allocation • Using telehealth to expand the types of appointments offered to people Giving patients direct access to • Self-referral to physiotherapy, psychological services that remove the need to services and s.