Being a GP is one of the most meaningful and rewarding roles in healthcare—but it’s also one of the most misunderstood. Many patients find themselves frustrated when they can’t get a same-day appointment, when referrals take longer than expected, or when a prescription isn’t offered. As GPs, we understand these frustrations—but we also want to share what it really looks like on the other side of the consulting room.
This article explores the real-life challenges we face in general practice, with the hope that greater understanding can lead to better care, more trust, and ultimately a stronger NHS.
One of the biggest barriers to accessible healthcare today is demand. The volume of patients seeking care far outweighs the number of appointments available. Everyone wants to be seen now, and understandably so—but this often creates healthcare access challenges, particularly for patients with more urgent or complex needs.
We strive to make general practice more accessible for underserved populations, but that means asking everyone to trust our triage system. If we don’t see you immediately, it’s not because we don’t care—it’s because someone else may need that slot more urgently.
When we refer you to secondary care, we’ve often already exhausted the other options. We don’t take this decision lightly. But hospitals are also under pressure, and healthcare workforce shortages affect both primary and secondary care.
We know how to navigate the NHS. Sometimes the route we recommend may feel roundabout—but it’s based on experience and on how the system actually works. Coordination between services is often more complex than it should be, due to a lack of shared systems and inefficiencies in healthcare communication.
One challenge we rarely talk about is how disconnected different parts of the NHS can be. Most hospital staff have never worked in a GP setting, and vice versa. That creates a disconnect in expectations and understanding, leading to delays and gaps in continuity of care.
To truly improve equity in healthcare delivery, we need better integration—not just of systems and software, but of understanding across the healthcare workforce.
We get it—when you’re unwell, you want a quick fix. But long-term condition management is rarely that simple. Overprescribing, especially antibiotics, can lead to resistance and harm both individuals and the population.
Instead, we’re here to offer safe, evidence-based guidance—and yes, sometimes the right answer is to wait, rest, and monitor symptoms.
In many practices, 10-minute appointments are the standard. That’s not because we want to rush you—it’s a compromise to balance volume and care. We’d love to spend longer with each patient, but understaffing, funding pressures, and system constraints make that incredibly hard.
Some issues take time to reveal themselves. We rely on your symptoms, your history, and often on patterns over time. There isn’t always a quick fix—but more often than not, things get better with time, and we’re here to guide that process.
We became GPs because we care. But we’re also human. The demands on primary care are increasing—especially as we respond to the needs of an ageing population, rising long-term conditions, and widening healthcare inequalities.
General practice is the foundation of the NHS. If it cracks, the whole system suffers. That’s why we need support—from policymakers, from the system, and from patients.
✔️ Trust the triage
✔️ Share clear information
✔️ Be kind—especially when the system feels unkind
✔️ Support investment and innovation in general practice
✔️ Understand that we’re on your side
In understanding the daily realities of general practice, we move closer to a healthcare system that works not just for patients, but with them. When the public, practitioners, and policymakers share a clearer view of the challenges and constraints, empathy grows—and with it, the potential for more sustainable, equitable care. Primary care is complex, stretched, and deeply human. Recognising that truth is the first step toward lasting improvement.