ArticleBMJ open2019
GP retention in the UK: a worsening crisis. Findings from a cross-sectional survey.
Article in BMJ open, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 77 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
77 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 121 citations in OpenAlex.
- Understanding why health professionals are leaving the UK national health service (NHS) - A systematic review and narrative synthesis.Journal of health services research & policy · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Family physician perspectives on managing indirect patient care activities in the electronic inbox: a systematic mixed studies review.Family practice · 2025Pooled it
- General practitioner strategies for managing patients with multimorbidity: a systematic review and thematic synthesis of qualitative research.BMC family practice · 2020Pooled it
- Understanding why primary care doctors leave direct patient care: a systematic review of qualitative research.BMJ open · 2020Pooled it
- Sustaining a career in general practice: a qualitative study of experienced GPs in South West England.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Developing pharmacist practice through a pilot family practice preceptorship programme: a prospective quantitative pre-post evaluation.International journal of clinical pharmacy · 2026Article
- Psychologists in primary care: A scoping review exploring the views and experiences of patients and professionals on psychology provision in primary care.Applied psychology. Health and well-being · 2026Article
- Between the clinic and the community: a qualitative study of logics of action on social determinants of health in general practices serving disadvantaged communities.BMC public health · 2026Article
- "There is never any rest, never enough time and too much to do": a qualitative study of GP work intensity in an Irish context.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- GP workforce sustainability to maximise effective and equitable patient care: a realist review.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Review
- Counting general practitioners: a comparative repeat cross-sectional analysis of GPs in NHS general practice in England.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Intensified job demands among general practitioners in Finland: associations with work engagement, job satisfaction, and recovery.BMC health services research · 2026Article
- Addressing systemic workforce challenges in general practice-a qualitative study of general practitioners in Ireland.Family practice · 2025Article
- Mapping the ideal job: insights into job resources of general practitioner trainees.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2025Article
- Retaining family physicians in comprehensive primary care: Scoping review.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2025Article
- Devalued: the financial erosion of the GP role.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025Article
- Strong Association of Perceived Chronic Stress with Leadership Quality, Work-Privacy Conflict and Quantitative Work Demands: Results of the IMPROVEBehavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- 'Forging healthy communities': a service evaluation of a 12-week community-based exercise, nutrition, behaviour change and peer-support programme.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Exploring General Practitioner Work in Upper Austria: A Pilot Retrospective Observational Study Across Thirty Practices.Zdravstveno varstvo · 2025Article
17 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo investigate how recent national policy-led workforce interventions are affecting intentions to remain working as a general practitioner (GP).
designOnline questionnaire survey with qualitative and quantitative questions. SETTING AND
participantsAll GPs (1697) in Wessex region, an area in England for which previous GP career intention data from 2014 is available.
results929 (54.7%) participated. 59.4% reported that morale had reduced over the past two years, and 48.5% said they had brought forward their plans to leave general practice. Intention to leave/retire in the next 2 years increased from 13% in the 2014 survey to 18% in October/November 2017 (p=0.02), while intention to continue working for at least the next 5 years dropped from 63.9% to 48.5% (p<0.0001). Age, length of service and lower job satisfaction were associated with intention to leave. Work intensity and amount were the most common reasons given for intention to leave sooner than previously planned; 51.0% participants reported working more hours than 2 years previously, predominantly due to increased workload.GPs suggested increased funding, more GPs, better education of the public and expanding non-clinical and support staff as interventions to improve GP retention.National initiatives that aligned with these priorities, such as funding to expand practice nursing were viewed positively, but low numbers of GPs had seen evidence of their roll-out. Conversely, national initiatives that did not align, such as video consulting, were viewed negatively.
conclusionWhile recent initiatives may be having an impact on targeted areas, most GPs are experiencing little effect. This may be contributing to further lowering of morale and bringing forward intentions to leave. More urgent action appears to be needed to stem the growing workforce crisis.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.