Seven in 10 GPs see rise in patients seeking help to deal with cost of living crisis, warns RCGP

GPs are seeing a “worrying” rise in the number of patients presenting with problems associated with poor diet and poverty compared with last year, according to a survey by the Royal College of GPs.1The cost of living crisis is also having a knock-on effect on the health and wellbeing of GPs, says RCGP, making it imperative that the government reforms funding formulas to better support practices in more deprived areas.Almost three quarters (73%) of the 1855 GPs who responded to the survey said they had seen an increase in patients asking for help because of the cost of living crisis. This includes asking doctors to prescribe non-medical items such as shampoo or nappies or for help to access council services and financial advice.“We’re also seeing patients with diseases that should have been confined to the annals of history—malnutrition, vitamin deficiencies, and even rickets—presenting in many GP surgeries across the UK,”…
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