Four million more GP appointments a month are being delivered for patients compared to the same month before the pandemic, new
GP practices are required to offer face to face appointments as well as telephone and online consultations, with some patients choosing remote appointments where it is clinically appropriate.
The new data shows that almost seven in ten GP appointments were delivered face-to-face in November.
The health service set out a range of measures in May last year to boost access to general practice for patients including more ways to access care for common conditions from high street pharmacies.
The action is expected to free up to 10 million GP appointments a year by next winter and, with 80 per cent of people in England living within a 20-minute walk of a pharmacy, the move will give the public more choice in where and how they access care.
The figures are published as a poll commissioned by the Liberal Democrats found that a third of patients had given up on trying to book an appointment with their GP.
The poll revealed that many had resorted to ‘DIY care’ or gone to A&E instead.
Meanwhile, one in three had delayed seeing a doctor despite being in pain.
Liberal Democrat leader, Sir Ed Davey, said: “Patients are left suffering in pain after years of neglect under the Conservative government, who have repeatedly broken their promise to recruit more GPs.”
