BMA Wales chair hopes for less complex system for patients

Doctors leaders say a shake-up in GPs' contracts will give them more time to treat patients in practices but not lead to changes in out of hours services.

Dr Charlotte Jones, chair of the BMA's Welsh GP committee, said she hoped it would reduce the number of patients turning up at A&E department inappropriately.

But she told Mai Davies on BBC Radio Wales that that issue was more to do with educating patients.

"To say that the out of hours service is not providing good care is, quite frankly, insulting to the out of hours providers," she said.

"They are under strain and a lot of them work very closely with their casualty departments to actually help them in managing the work which has inappropriately turns up.

"It is all about patient education and explaining where they go to get help.

"There is an ongoing piece of work which we need to do around educating patients about where to go to get help when they need it."