How much does a GP cut a patient’s risk of dying?
'GPs become specialists on their individual patients, rather than on their diseases' say researchers
The benefits of a long-standing GP relationship have been confirmed in a study showing patients with a regular doctor are less likely to die or need acute hospital admission.
Having the same GP for more than 15 years cuts the risk of needing out-of-hours care by 30% and that of acute hospital admission by 28%, compared to patients who have had their GP for a year or less.
And those with a long-term regular GP also face a 25% lower risk of dying within 12 months compared to those who have only been a patient of their GP for up to a year.
The longer a patient had known their doctor, the greater the benefits, according to the researchers, led by Professor Hogne Sandvik, of the University of Bergen in Norway.
