Health Secretary Sajid Javid announced today (14 October) that GPs in England will receive £250m in a bid to improve access to their services, but only if they increase the number of face-to-face consultations.
How often patients see a GP face-to-face differs widely across England.
Nearly three-quarters of appointments in the North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) area in August were in-person, either at surgeries or through home visits. This was the highest rate in the country.
However, in comparison with this, face-to-face consultations made up less than half of all appointments in South East London, East Staffordshire, South Sefton in Merseyside and Bolton.
But where in England are you least likely to get a face-to-face GP appointment?
These are the 15 areas where you are least likely to get a face-to-face appointment, according to NHS data for August 2021.
1. NHS South East London CCG
47.76% of appointments were in person (either in surgery or home visits) in August Photo: Shutterstock
2. NHS East Staffordshire CCG
48.52% of appointments were in person in August Photo: Shutterstock
3. NHS South Sefton CCG
48.87% of appointments were in person in August Photo: Shutterstock
4. NHS Bolton CCG
49.74% of appointments were in person in August Photo: Shutterstock