GP practices to receive at least £28k to host medical undergraduates

GP practices will receive a minimum of £28,000 to host an undergraduate medical student for a year’s placement in 2020/21, the Government has announced.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said it will introduce a national minimum tariff for undergraduate placements in primary care, similar to those in secondary care.

It said: ‘From 2020-21, HEE are putting in place a new national minimum rate for undergraduate medical placements in general practice.

‘This will mean that although general practice placements will continue to be under locally agreed arrangements, no price will be lower than £28,000.’

The new rate will take effect ‘when general practice placement activity resumes in 2020-21’, it added.

Dr Krishna Kasaraneni, BMA GP committee executive team workforce lead, took to Twitter to welcome the news but warned that this ‘doesn’t meet the true cost of training’.

He said: ‘Following sustained lobbying from colleagues at the Society for Academic Primary Care, the BMA and the RCGP and many others, it is refreshing to see the introduction of a minimum tariff [for undergraduate] medical placements in general practice of £28,000. 

‘Whilst this doesn’t meet the true cost of training, it certainly is a step in the right direction. This starts to address some of the inequities in funding for training and should result in a better training experience for medical students in general practice.’

The increased funding comes after a study found practices were receiving 40% less in funding than the actual costs of hosting medical student undergraduates.

As previously published on our sister title Pulse.