§ 135. Mr. BeithTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the future of general practice in rural areas under his proposed changes and under the new contract.
§ Mrs. Virginia BottomleyPatients living in rural areas will benefit from the changes to the GPs' contract. In particular the new contract encourages more minor surgery and child health surveillance in general practice, extra services for elderly patients, greater cover for childhood immunisation and more screening for cancer of the cervix, more health promotion advice for all adults and more professional staff in the surgery such as nurses, counsellors and chiropodists.
GPs working in rural areas sometimes experience difficulties due to the scattered nature of their practices. In consultation with the BMA's general medical services committee, the Department of Health and the Welsh Office are reviewing the present arrangements (in England and Wales) for paying these GPs a rural practice payment. In doing so, full account will be taken of changes that are taking place in rural practice.