Helen Salisbury: Being a GP in an unequal society

This week I learnt that England has the second highest income inequality in Europe, and the recent “fiscal event” and a forecast return to austerity are likely to make things worse for those at the bottom.1 We all know that lower income brings poorer health and earlier death, and while sitting in my consulting room doing my best for the patient in front of me, it often feels as if there’s nothing I can do to change this.GP services are poorly distributed across the country, as areas of deprivation are relatively under-doctored and underfunded.2 One thing I could do, of course, is go and work on the other side of town, where the surgeries are harder pressed and the patients less affluent. However, one of my other preoccupations is the value of continuity of care, and I’m not ready or willing to end relationships with patients and colleagues that I’ve…
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