Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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3256. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons waiting for a general practitioner appointment by county in tabular form; and the average waiting time. [41065/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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GPs are self-employed private practitioners. While the majority also provide services to Medical Card and GP Visit Card holders under contract to the HSE, they retain their private status and, as a result, information on the number of people waiting for a GP appointment is not collected by my Department or the HSE.

The Government is aware of the workforce issues currently facing general practice, including the limited access to GP services in certain areas, and has implemented a number of measures to improve recruitment and retention in general practice.

These measures include an increase in investment in general practice by approximately 40% (€210 million) between 2019 and 2023 under the terms of the 2019 GMS GP Agreement. The Agreement provides for increased support for GPs working in rural practices and for those in disadvantaged urban areas, and for improvements to maternity and paternity leave arrangements. In addition, the number of GPs entering training has been increased steadily over the past number of years, rising from 120 in 2009 to 233 in 2021.

These measures will see an increase in the number of GPs working in the State, improving access to GP services for patients throughout the country.