more needs to be done to end the “bottleneck” of patients attempting to get a GP appointment on the phone through the 8am “morning scramble”, the Health Minister has said, despite “progress being made.”

In December 2021, the ‘morning scramble’ of having to ring your GP at 8am in the hopes of getting an appointment looked set to come to an end, as the Welsh Government pushed funding to GPs in a bid to “implement more efficient booking systems” as part of new contracts.

The changes, backed by £12m of investment, will “end the morning scramble to book an appointment”, the Welsh Government said at the time, with the revised contract “making it clear the practice of releasing appointments daily at 8am is no longer acceptable.”

This week, while thanking GPs for “progress made in tackling the 8am bottleneck and making it easier for people to get appointments”, Health Minister Eluned Morgan said “more needs to be done to ensure everyone in Wales can expect the same service.”

She said that 95 per cent of practices across Wales have said they are now providing a mix of remote, face to face, urgent and pre-bookable appointments, and that people can contact their practice throughout the day to make an appointment.

These practices have also said they have now trained staff to direct people to the care that is right for them – to other services, like pharmacies or opticians, where appropriate, or to offer an appointment the same day or in the future if less urgent.

As part of the new contract with GPs that comes into force this month, other practices are working towards implementing changes to make getting an appointment easier, she said.

The Health Minister has also encouraged the public to think about how they can help improve access to GPs by attending all appointments or cancelling appointments if they are no longer needed to free up appointments for other people.

Data from the past year shows that on average around 80,000 people across Wales do not attend their appointments each month, with missed appointments “costing other people the opportunity to see their GP,”

The Health Minister said: “GPs and their staff have worked tirelessly in the face of ongoing pressure, and I thank them for their commitment to improving access.

“Patients should be able to contact their GP practice throughout the day to book an appointment, avoiding the ‘8am bottleneck’ that causes frustration to many.

“The majority of practices have already started doing this and others are working to put new processes in place to achieve this.

“GPs are the first step in someone’s health care journey, and it is vital everyone can be seen, triaged, treated or referred on a more appropriate service as quickly and efficiently as possible.”