In the last five to ten years, there has been a tremendous increase in the tasks of GPs, according to the Swedish Association of General Practitioners. Badboni El-Safadi has also marked it. He nevertheless chose to return to the profession as a GP after several years as a hospital doctor. – There is no doubt that the workload has increased significantly over time. More and more of the tasks that others did in the past have been transferred to GPs, says El-Safadi. Time for a life outside of work Now he has taken over a medical home with responsibility for 1,000 patients in Horten municipality. An important reason is that the municipality has made slightly better arrangements for GPs, says El-Safadi. – Horten municipality has entered into agreements that are a little more favorable for the GPs who are coming. Badboni El-Safadi lives in Moss, but is a new GP in Horten with 1,000 patients on his list. Photo: PRIVAT GPs can rent a doctor’s home from the municipality, instead of spending a lot of money to buy one. There are more flexible arrangements to adapt the workload somewhat, he points out. El-Safadi believes moves like this will prompt more people to do the same. – It’s about making it a little more edible. That you can work as a GP, but also have a life on the side. Releasing guards at the emergency room in the evening and at night is one example of what can lighten the burden, he believes. – It takes a toll on a rather tired GP to do those things in addition, says El-Safadi. It was Gjengangeren who first mentioned the case. Tasks that GPs have been given in recent years Certificates of absence for students in upper secondary school The co-operation reform: More tasks moved from hospitals to GPs Dialogue meetings with Nav More organization of patient trips More certificates and referrals linked to increased use of private health insurance Increased reporting requirements for sick leave Increased responsibility for follow-up of driver’s license cases Increased expectations for services at the emergency room Must certify consent competence (SOURCE: General Practitioners’ Association) – Acts as a travel agency Although GPs have gradually cut their patient lists, they still work more, says head of the General Practitioners’ Association Nils Kristian Klev. He points out that the average working time has increased by seven hours a week, to 56 hours, according to a labor survey a few years ago. – The co-operation reform has led to each individual patient on the GP’s list becoming more work-intensive, says head of the Association of General Practitioners, Nils Petter Klev. Photo: Allmennlegeforening Not all tasks require a GP’s expertise to be carried out, believes Klev. Certificates of absence for upper secondary school students are something other than doctors should be able to take over, he points out. Changes in patient journeys are another example. – Doctors’ offices function as travel agencies and must book travel for patients who are entitled to it, instead of documenting the need for travel, he says. Looking at what the GPs can let go of The Ministry of Health and Care is now looking at which of the GPs’ tasks can be removed or taken over by others. This applies, among other things, to various types of certificates and administrative tasks. – I agree with the GPs that the workload must be reduced, says State Secretary Ole Henrik Krat Bjørkholt. The ministry is in dialogue with the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Labor and Inclusion about this. But it is too early to set a date when this will be ready, comments Bjørkolt. Substitute doctor worked around the clock – several municipalities have sent a report of concern Other health professional groups can take over Dean at Oslo Met, Faculty of Health Sciences, Gro Jamtvedt, believes it is necessary that other health personnel relieve the GPs of some tasks. – The Health Personnel Commission is quite clear that we will have fewer employees per inhabitant. Then we have to utilize the health personnel we have today in new ways, she says. Complex problems should be followed up by GPs, but more routine tasks can be done by other professional groups, Jamtvedt believes. Several health professional groups have good expertise that can relieve GPs, so that they can spend their time on what they need to, says Gro Jamtvedt, dean at Oslo Met, Faculty of Health Sciences. Photo: OSLOMET Examples of this are following up patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes, COPD, and people with dementia.
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Massive increase in the tasks of GPs – news Vestfold and Telemark – Local news, TV and radio
