There have been turf wars in the healthcare industry for eons, starting with witch doctors and shamans and progressing through to apothecaries and barber-surgeons.

But let’s focus on the modern era.

Readers might believe that the current battle is between GPs and pharmacists — our colleagues down the street who are being pressed to become barefoot doctors — but this is not the case.

And, as the potted history below suggests, turf wars are all about commercial realities rather than professional standards, as much as GPs want the latter to be true.