The King’s Fund poll shows that GPs and other practice staff on average think 83% of GP practices in England provide high-quality care.
When asked about how to improve quality, the majority of respondents think clinical best practice guidance is the most effective approach, followed by the QOF.
But 57% of respondents thought that patient surveys were the least effective approach to quality improvement, followed by revalidation (54%) and balanced scorecards (53%).
It also showed that more than half of respondents (57%) think continuity of care should be prioritised as a way of improving the quality of general practice.
In contrast, just one in five thought that access to care should be prioritised, despite its strong focus in recent debate on health reform.
Nick Goodwin, senior fellow at The King’s Fund and director of the GP Inquiry, said: ‘While access to GP services is clearly important and has been the focus of recent NHS reforms, GPs and patients alike are telling us that continuity of care should be a significant aspect in delivering quality improvements in general practice.’
