a day ago
- Health
- The Herald Scotland
Tories propose 'Scottish first' approach to medical training
The new proposals were unveiled as party members gathered in Edinburgh for their annual conference.
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'What we've got is Scottish students not getting jobs in Scotland and they are leaving across the world," Dr Gulhane said.
'The SNP was great at training doctors for Australia. It's an absolute disgrace.'
He added: 'We would offer Scottish graduates first because they tend to stay, and more than that, they tend to stay where they're from. So if you're from an island or a rural area, you will want to go back to that place. That creates GPs in areas that we are desperate for.'
Dr Gulhane also unveiled a plan for a 'seven-day-a-week GP-led service', supported by targeted investment in the NHS's core funding mechanism for general practices.
'We would create a seven-day-a-week GP service,' he said. 'We have this unique position where we have unemployed GPs, and yet everyone wants to see a GP.
'We literally have unemployed GPs, so we would start actually using the capacity that was there.'
He said his party would 'put money into Global Sum specifically ring-fenced for additional GP appointments.'
'So an example I always give is if you've got a urine infection, it's not an emergency, but you need to get seen,' he said. 'If you can't get a GP appointment during the day, you will call up NHS24 because it hurts, it's uncomfortable and whilst you're not desperately unwell, you deserve to get treated.
'But if I've created more capacity in GP, you will get treated in GP, which means you're not calling NHS24, which means urgent and emergency patients get through. And they get seen by a GP.'
He added: 'There are going to be people who spill over, and there's going to be people who need to be seen urgently in the evening and I, as a practising GP, understand that, and I'm creating a policy that makes sense.
'So we would put more money into NHS24. And that is, again, ring-fenced, specifically for GP appointments.'
Dr Gulhane said he wanted to see a shift toward early intervention in healthcare to reduce pressure on hospitals and specialist services.
'It saves us money because if you're a bit sad and you come to see me and I get on top of that and I help you and I get you into, say, a talking therapy and we solve your being a bit sad, you're not going to be depressed,' he said.
'Depression and sadness are very different things, but I can treat you early and I can get on top of the problem early, which means you don't progress in needing secondary care.'
