Why private general practice has a place

We are supporters of NHS general practice. Free-at-the-point-of-delivery primary care has been transformational for the UK over the last 75 years, and is vital for those who cannot afford to access healthcare services privately. However today, with demand completely outstripping the supply of clinicians and resources, the system is broken - almost no where in the UK can you get the access to GPs in the way that was originally intended.

Our view is that every patient seen by our clinicians privately, is one less appointment that needs to be delivered by the patient's NHS GP practice, and therefore is one more appointment available for patients at that practice without the means to pay.

On this basis, contrary to the popular opinion that private services undermine NHS general practice, we believe that services like Mayfield Clinic will actually prolong the 'free-at-the-point-of-delivery' model for longer.

Yes, clinicians may be drawn into the private sector - but realistically, many NHS GPs are considered leaving the profession altogether due to the strains they are under, so at least this keeps them within the industry. And yes, those paying for private treatment may get a differentiated level of service (as those attending private schools do) - but at an overall level, fewer patients using NHS primary care resources will improve the service for those who remain under day-to-day NHS care.

Where private general practice falls down

The private primary care sector occasionally gets criticised for increasing the workload of NHS providers - most clearly, by conducting testing without a clear evidence base, and leaving NHS GPs to deal with the consequences.

In many cases, in our opinion, this criticism is unfortunately justified. Unnecessary investigations are increasingly common, for example when clinicians allow their judgement to be clouded by financial returns, or when high-street 'healthcare' providers, such as Medichecks or Randox, go direct to consumers skipping out a clinician's involvement.

How we set ourselves apart

We subscribe to the adage "test enough and you'll eventually find something" - and in response to unmerited investigations (which can create issues for patients), we make a point of our commitment to non-maleficence.

Additionally, we have prioritised our ability to collaborate with NHS GPs when delivering patient care. Increasingly, patients are using the private sector to complement their NHS provision. Traditionally, this has created siloed care, where some elements of a patient's history sits with the NHS GP, and some elements with their private GP - and there is little by the way of joined up communication. Besides being potentially unsafe, this creates issues for the patient's care, where the private GP and NHS GP could end up offering differing advice.

To respond to this, we've invested heavily in our technology at Mayfield, so that with your permission we are now able to access your NHS record, and with the consent of you and your NHS GP, we can share information directly back with them. Additionally, we have pioneered a first-of-a-kind secure data sharing between private GP practices, meaning that for patients using multiple private GPs (for example in London and Oxford), their record can be consolidated for review by either private GP.