I received a troubling letter on Thursday from the Kent Primary Care Agency.At first glance I thought the letter was a mistake.
It was asking me to confirm my current residential address; failure to do so would result in me being struck off from my GP. (letter attached left)
Given that I had paid a visit to my GP within the last six months, I was a little surprised to receive this letter. I decided to give Kent PCA a call.
They informed me that this letter was being sent to every single resident of Medway. I was told that unless the confirmation was sent back within 6 weeks, I would in fact be struck off. I was told that no reminder letter would be sent. Whilst I doubt that there will be no further communication before patients are struck off, it is worrying nethertheless that this threat exists.
Three things concern me.
Why are they sending these letters out?
Well, it does not seem to be for the benefit of patients.The reason stated for the letter is that 'it is important that the data we hold is correct as payments to GPs, health screening and immunisation programmes are based on this information'.
Was there not a cheaper way to do this?
Writing to every single patient in Medway is expensive. If this is about ensuring certain GP practices are not oversubscribed, could the Kent PCA not just have written to patients in oversubscribed surgeries and perhaps only those patients who have not seen their GPs for the last year? If this mail-out is to prevent NHS fraud or overpayments to particular surgeries (as the letter would suggest), it seems to me a much cheaper alternative would have been to take audit samples from each surgery.
Alternatively, the electoral roll could have been compared to GP lists.
Isn't this punishing patients?
I am concerned that many people in Medway will simply dismiss these letters as junk mail and be inadvertently struck off from their GP. I also fear these letters will concern elderly residents unduly.
To strike patients off from their GP because they have not replied to a letter within six weeks is unacceptable and I shall be asking Liberal Democrat councillors to follow up on this issue.
